Presence of Rheumatoid Factor during Chronic HCV Infection Is Associated with Expansion of Mature Activated Memory B-Cells that Are Hypo-Responsive to B-Cell Receptor Stimulation and Persist during the Early Stage of IFN Free Therapy
Fig 1
Increased viral load in HCV RF+ donors and gating strategy to enumerate B cell subset frequencies from whole blood.
(A), HCV RNA copies IU/mL HCV RF- (●, n = 23) and HCV RF+ (▼, n = 23). (B) Shown an uninfected donor sample for total immature transitional B cells (CD19+CD20+CD10+) and its differentiation stages: T1 stage (CD19+CD20+CD10+CD21-) and T2 stage (CD19+CD20+CD10+CD21+). Mature activated B cells(CD19+CD20+CD10-CD21-CD27+), resting memory B cells (CD19+CD20+CD21+CD27+), naïve (CD19+CD20+CD21+CD27-),Tissue like memory B cells (CD19+CD20+CD10-CD21-CD27-) and Plasmablast cells (CD19+CD20-CD38+)