Peripheral T-lymphocyte subpopulations in different clinical stages of chronic HBV infection correlate with HBV load

Figure 1 Peripheral blood T-lymphocyte subpopulations in patients at different clinical stages of chronic HBV infection. The mean percentages of CD3⁺, CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T cells and CD4⁺/CD8⁺ ratio were shown in patients at the different stages and control. Top of the box represents the 75%, the bottom of the box represents the 25%, the solid line in the middle of the box represents the median. Whiskers above and below the box indicate the 90% and 10%, while filled circles represent outliers. A statistically significant difference in T cells but not in CD4⁺ cells was observed between chronic HBV infection patients and normal control (P < 0.01). In the peripheral blood of patients at the immune-tolerant and immune-active stages, CD8⁺ T-cells were the dominant lymphocytes compared to CD4⁺ T-cells, whereas in the peripheral blood of patients at the immune-inactive carrier stage and normal controls, CD4⁺ T-cells were the dominant lymphocytes compared to CD8⁺ T-cells.