Abstract: Objective:To investigate the influence of Albendazole (ABZ) on the expression of T bet and GATA3 mRNA of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in patients with hepatic alveolar echinococcosis (HAE) and its significance.
Methods:The clinical data of 55 individuals in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University from April to November 2013 were retrospectively analyzed. Fifteen patients with HAE who received ABZ orally were in the HAE+ABZ group, 15 patients with HAE were in the HAE group, and 26 healthy individuals were in the healthy donor group. ABZ was administered with dosage of 10 mg/(kg·d) for (2.5±2.3)years. The peripheral blood was drawn at the second day. The mRNA expressions of T bet and GATA3 in the peripheral mononuclear cells were detected by real time PCR. The plasma levels of interferon γ (IFN γ) and interleukin -5 (IL -5) were detected by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Normal distribution data were presented by ±s and skewed distribution data were presonted by M. Data were analyzed using the analysis of variance or LSD t test, and the correlation of 2 factors was analyzed using the linear correlation analysis.
Results:The median value of the expression of T bet in the HAE+ABZ group, the HAE group and the healthy donor group were 0.117, 0.114, 0.094, with no significant difference between the 3 groups (F=0.34, P>0.05) . The median value of the expressions of the GATA3 in the HAE+ABZ group, the HAE group and the healthy donor group were 0.006, 0.007, 0.021, with significant difference between the 3 groups (F=4.96, P<0.05). The median value of the ratios of T bet to GATA3 in the HAE+ABZ group, the HAE group and the healthy donor group were 25.618, 8.235, 4.350, with significant difference between the 3 groups (F=9.12, P<0.05). The expressions of IFN γ in the HAE+ABZ group, the HAE group and the healthy donor group were  (367±252)μg/L, (305±52)μg/L and (326±122)μg/L, with no significant difference between the 3 groups (F=0.52, P>0.05). The expressions of IL -5 in the HAE+ABZ group, the HAE group and the healthy donor group were (40±8)μg/L, (52±39)μg/L and (41±6)μg/L, with no significant difference between the 3 groups (F=1.85, P>0.05). The ratios of IFN γ to IL -5 in the HAE+ABZ group, the HAE group and the healthy donor group were 9.5± 9.2, 6.8±2.1 and 8.0±2.8, with no significantly difference between the 3 groups (F=1.18, P>0.05). There was no correlation between the administration time of ABZ and the ratio of T bet to GATA3 in the HAE+ABZ group (r=0.076, P>0.05).
Conclusions:The ratio of T bet to GATA3 is significantly increased after administration of ABZ, and the Th1/Th2 immune response is skewed towards Th1 cells to enhance the parasite elimination, and thus the Th2 cells response is weakened. The ratio of T bet to GATA3 may be the indicator for evaluating the efficacy of ABZ in the treatment of HAZ.