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Long-term persistence of anti-rods and rings antibodies in patients with chronic hepatitis C after antiviral treatment

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Abstract

Anti-rods and rings (anti-RR) antibodies are related to hepatitis C virus (HCV) in patients treated with pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN) and ribavirin (RBV). Only RBV induces rods/rings structures in vitro; but in vivo, the antibody appearance is related to the combination of these drugs, because data about patients using just one of these drugs alone is missing. Some studies suggest disappearance of these antibodies over time. The aim of this study was to describe the occurrence of anti-RR in patients with chronic hepatitis C treatment-naïve or previously PEG-IFN/RBV-experienced, evaluating the persistence of anti-RR antibodies long after PEG-IFN/RBV treatment. From 2016 to 2017, 70 HCV-infected patients were screened for anti-RR using indirect immunofluorescence. Demographic and clinical data about previous treatments against HCV were assessed. Thirty-four patients (49%) had been previously treated with PEG-IFN/RBV and the average time since they had received the last antiviral treatment was 85.4 months. Anti-RR seropositivity was detected in 16 patients (23%), and all of these had used PEG-IFN/RBV (corresponding to 47% of experienced patients). Previous antiviral treatment and previous exposure time to RBV were associated with anti-RR positivity. Median time elapsed since last treatment was similar between anti-RR-positive and anti-RR-negative patients. Anti-RR seropositivity was not observed in treatment-naïve patients, but was detected in almost half of patients previously treated with PEG-IFN and RBV, even after a long period without exposure to these drugs. This antibody was related to extended prior exposure to ribavirin.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the patients who participate in this study. We also appreciate the help of Caroline Louise Diniz Pereira with the collection of samples and Emídio Cavalcanti de Albuquerque with the statistical analysis. The English text of this paper has been revised by Sidney Pratt, Canadian, MAT (The Johns Hopkins University), RSAdip - TESL (Cambridge University).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Postgraduate Program in Health Sciences Center, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Professor Moraes Rego, 1235, Recife, PE, 50670-901, Brazil

    Ana Beatriz da Silva Sacerdote

  2. Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Hospital das Clínicas, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Professor Moraes Rego, 1235, Recife, PE, 50670-901, Brazil

    Norma Arteiro Filgueira, Andréa Dória Batista & Edmundo Pessoa Lopes

  3. Clinical Laboratory, Hospital das Clínicas, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Professor Moraes Rego, 1235, Recife, PE, 50670-901, Brazil

    Silvana de Barros Barreto

Authors
  1. Ana Beatriz da Silva Sacerdote
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  2. Norma Arteiro Filgueira
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  3. Silvana de Barros Barreto
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  4. Andréa Dória Batista
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  5. Edmundo Pessoa Lopes
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Correspondence to Ana Beatriz da Silva Sacerdote.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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da Silva Sacerdote, A.B., Filgueira, N.A., de Barros Barreto, S. et al. Long-term persistence of anti-rods and rings antibodies in patients with chronic hepatitis C after antiviral treatment. Immunol Res 66, 605–610 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12026-018-9026-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12026-018-9026-3

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