Growing evidence suggests a role for the immunomodulatory cytokine interleukin-10 (IL-10) in hepatitis C virus (HCV)-specific CD8(+) T-cell failure. To address the possible role of IL-10 during priming, we performed in vitro priming experiments with naive HCV-specific CD8(+) T cells and autologous monocyte-derived dendritic cells in the absence or presence of IL-10. Our results showed that IL-10, when present during priming, significantly reduced the frequency of HCV-specific CD8(+) T cells after coculture; It was directly targeting CD8(+) T cells and led to impaired effector cell differentiation. These results may provide a possible mechanistic basis for the association between early IL-10 elevation, T-cell failure, and viral persistence.
Keywords: CD8+ T cells; CD8+ T-cell responses; HCV; IL-10; chronic hepatitis C; chronic viral infection; dendritic cells; primary activation.
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