Efficacy and safety of UCB- derived or autologous CIK cells combined with interferon therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis B

Objective To investigate the efficacy and safety of umbilical cord blood ( UCB) - derived or autologous cytokine- induced killer ( CIK) cells combined with interferon therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis B ( CHB) . Methods Thirty CHB patients hospitalized in the Department of Infectious Diseases from October 2010 to June 2013 were included in the study. These patients were randomly and equally divided into first and second treatment groups and control group. The first or second treatment group underwent transplantation of UCB- derived or autologous CIK cells combined with interferon therapy; the control group received interferon therapy alone. At 4 and 12 weeks after treatment, alanine aminotransferase ( ALT) , serum hepatitis B virus ( HBV) marker, HBV DNA, and CD4+/CD8+ratio in peripheral blood were measured. Comparison of means was made by paired t test or independent- samples t test. Results At 12 weeks after transplantation of UCB- derived or autologous CIK cells, the first or second treatment group had ALT, HBeAg, and HBV DNA levels of ( 22. 6 ± 14. 4) or ( 32. 9 ± 15. 3) U /L, ( 12. 5 ± 5. 8) or ( 18. 4 ± 8. 8) PEIU /ml, and ( 3. 2 ± 0. 7) or ( 3. 7 ± 0. 6) log10 copies /ml, respectively, significantly lower than those for control group ( t = 2. 80 ~ 5. 45, P < 0. 05) . At 4 weeks after transplantation, the two treatment groups had significantly increased CD4+levels and CD4+/CD8+ratios compared with the control group ( t = 2. 21 ~ 2. 43, P < 0. 05) . No severe adverse reactions and transplantation- related severe complications were found in the two treatment groups. Conclusion For CHB patients, transplantation of UCB- derived or autologous CIK cells significantly inhibits virus replication rapidly, improves liver function, relieves clinical symptoms, improves cellular immunity, and has high safety.