Causes and mechanisms of immunization failure in newborns deduced by maternalª²fetal hepatitis B virus (HBV) from transmission

    YUAN Rong1, WANG Chenª²Hong1, LIU Xiaoª²Mei2, WANG Xiaoª²Qing2

    1Department of Gynecology, Shenzhen Municipal Maternal and Children Hospital, Shenzhen 518028, China, 2Department of Gynecology, Nanjing Municipal Maternal and Children Hospital, Nanjing 210004, China

    ¡¾Abstract¡¿ AIM: To study the relationships between newborns¬ð immunization failure and intrauterine infection, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and interleukin 2(ILª²2) and to explore the reasons and mechanisms of immunization failure in newborns induced by maternalª²fetal BHV transmission. METHODS: Fiftyª²two pregnant women carrying HBsAg but with no symptoms and their newborns were taken as the experiential group, while 8 pregnant women with HBV M negative and their newborns as the normal control group. The newborns¬ð serum and PBMC HBV DNA were detected by Nestedª²PCR and HBV M was tested with solid phase radioimmunoassay. PBMC from the newborns were incubated by PHA and HBsAg and the supernatant ILª²2 level was measured by enzyme linked immununosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: In the newborns born from HbsAg positive mothers, the immunization failure percentage was obviously higher in HBV DNA positive PBMC than that in HBV DNA negative PBMC, and there was significant difference between them (P<0.01). Under the stimulation of PHA or HBsAg in the newborns from HbsAg positive mothers, the ILª²2 levels in PBMC supernatant were obviously lower in HBV DNA positive PBMC group than those in HBV DNA negative and normal control groups. Significant difference was found between the former and the latter two(P<0.01) while no difference was found between the latter two (P>0.05). Under the stimulation of PHA or HBsAg, the ILª²2 levels in PBMC supernatant were obviously lower in vaccination failure newborns than those in vaccination success and normal control groups. There was significant difference between the former and the latter two (P<0.01) but no difference was found between the latter two (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: The interuterine PBMC HBV invasion is one of the important causes of vaccination failure in the newborns. The downª²regulation of PBMC ILª²2 autocrine is closely related to the HBV invasion, which may lead to the failure of HBVac inoculation in the newborns. ......