Production of interferon-gamma and interleukin-10 after inactivated hepatitis A immunization
Hayney, M.S.; Buck, J.M.; Muller, D.
PharmacoTherapy 23(4): 431-435
2003
ISSN/ISBN: 0277-0008 PMID: 12680472 Document Number: 565411
Study Objective: To assess helper T cell function by measuring cytokine production over time after hepatitis A immunization. Design: Open-label, single-dose study. Setting: General clinical research center of a university hospital. Subjects: Twenty-five healthy adults. Intervention: Each subject was immunized with inactivated hepatitis A vaccine; blood was drawn on day 0 (the day of immunization) and days 2, 5, 7, 10, and 28 after immunization. Measurements and Main Results: Production of interferon (IFN)-gamma and interleukin (IL)-10 by peripheral blood mononuclear cells stimulated in culture with hepatitis A virus was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Concentrations of hepatitis A antibody were measured on day 28. Both IFN-gamma and IL-10 production peaked on day 10 after immunization (IFN-gamma day 0 median=7.35 pg/ml, interquartile ratio (IQR)=20.8 vs day 10 median=22.35 pg/ml, IQR=42.4, p<0.05; IL-10 day 0 median=1.00, IQR=7.4 vs day 10 median=11.75 pg/ml, IQR=92.3, p<0.02, Wilcoxon signed rank test). The IL-10:IFN-gamma ratio on day 10 correlated with antibody production (Pearson product moment correlation 0.46, p<0.05). This ratio was used as a measure of helper T cell phenotype. Conclusion: Both IFN-gamma and IL-10 are produced in response to hepatitis A vaccine. The parallel production after immunization may contribute to the high efficacy of these vaccine preparations in inducing both cell-mediated immune response and a protective antibody response.