A pathogenic CD8⁺ TRM–chemokine axis orchestrates liver fibrosis and provides circulating biomarkers during chronic Clonorchis sinensis infection

Information from the abstract

Chronic liver fluke infections represent a major global health burden, driving liver fibrosis and elevating cancer risk, yet the immunological mechanisms linking persistent infection to tissue damage remain poorly defined. Using Clonorchis sinensis, a carcinogenic liver fluke infecting millions worldwide, as a representative model, we map immune responses during chronic infection in mice. We show that intrahepatic CD8⁺ tissue-resident memory T cells (TRM) progressively accumulate and drive pathology by producing chemokines that promote immune recruitment and fibroblast activation. Depletion of CD8⁺ T cells during defined disease phases markedly alleviates liver inflammation and fibrosis, demonstrating their causal role. Strikingly, C-C motif chemokine ligand 4, predominantly secreted by CD8⁺ TRM cells, correlates with fibrosis severity in both experimental models and patient cohorts, establishing it as a circulating biomarker for noninvasive disease monitoring. These findings define a pathogenic CD8⁺ TRM–chemokine axis underlying helminth-induced liver injury and highlight TRM-derived chemokines as biomarkers and therapeutic targets for fibrosis across chronic parasitic infections. Chronic hepatic parasitic infection drives liver fibrosis. Here the authors establish a pathogenic tissue-resident CD8+ T cell chemokine axis that is linked to liver fibrosis during chronic Clonorchis sinensis infection.

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Related topics: Parasites and Host Interactions · Inflammation biomarkers and pathways · Liver physiology and pathology