Abstract: Objective   To explore the changes and functions of plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) in peripheral blood of patients with acute hepatitis B (AHB) in clinical outcome. Methods   Totally 40 AHB patients (AHB group) were selected from June 2015 to May 2017. They were treated with drugs to relieve jaundice,  reduce enzyme activity and protect liver. They were also given 0.5 mg oral entecavir on an empty stomach once a day. And 26 healthy people were selected as health control group (HC group). The whole blood samples were obtained from AHB group six weeks before and after the treatment,  and from HC group at the time of medical examination,  respectively.  ELISA method was used to detect the levels of HBV DNA,  HBsAg,  HBeAg and liver function indexes,  and flow cytometry was used to detect the frequency of pDCs and the expression level of CD86. Results  After six weeks of treatment,  the clinical symptoms of AHB group were significantly relieved,  and the levels of serological indicators and hepatitis B markers significantly decreased(P<0.01). The negative conversion ratio of HBV DNA in AHB patients was 82.5%,  the clearance rate of HBsAg was 72.5%,  and the serological conversion rate of HBeAg was 75.0%. There were statistically significant differences before and after the treatment (P<0.01). The frequency of pDCs in HC group was higher than that in AHB group before the treatment.  The expression level of CD86 on pDCs in AHB patients after the treatment was higher than before. CD86ABC in HC group was obviously lower than that in AHB group before the treatment. Conclusion  The frequency of pDCs in peripheral blood decreased in AHB group. The CD86 on pDCs increased in AHB patients after the treatment. The expression of CD86 on pDCs in AHB patients was upregulated.

Key words: hepatitis B virus；dendritic cells, immunoreaction