A new study published April 21, 2022 concluded that “COVID-19 vaccination can elicit a distinct T cell-dominant immune-mediated hepatitis (liver inflammation) with a unique pathomechanism associated with vaccination-induced antigen-specific tissue-resident immunity requiring systemic immunosuppression.”
The findings come one week after the World Health Organization issued a ‘global alert’ about a new form of severe hepatitis affecting children.
The United Kingdom launched an urgent investigation after detecting at least 74 cases in which children came down with hepatitis, or liver inflammation.
While health officials are still investigating possible causes, it’s currently believed “the most likely” trigger was an adenovirus.
Peter Collignon, an Australian microbiologist and infectious diseases expert, said lockdowns during the pandemic may have reduced kids’ exposure to adenoviruses – common viruses that can cause cold-like symptoms, including fevers and sore throats.
“If you get infections when you’re very young, you seem to have better immune protection,” he told Daily Mail Australia.
COVID-19 Lockdowns Sparked Rise of Severe Hepatitis in Children?
Daily Expose updated the rise of hepatitis infections in the United Kingdom:
As of 25th April, the hepatitis infections had been confirmed to have hit children in twelve different countries, with the majority of those cases spiking in the UK. At least 169 cases had been reported by this date, and 17 children had required a liver transplant. Sadly, as of 25th April, 1 child had unfortunately lost their life.
Hepatitis is a condition that affects the liver and may occur for a number of reasons, including several viral infections common in children. However, in the cases under investigation, the common viruses that cause hepatitis have not been detected.
Hepatitis symptoms include:
- dark urine
- pale, grey-coloured poo
- itchy skin
- yellowing of the eyes and skin (jaundice)
- muscle and joint pain
- a high temperature
- feeling and being sick
- feeling unusually tired all the time
- loss of appetite
- tummy pain
The new study published this month concluded that the COVID-19 injection can elicit a CD8 T-cell dominant hepatitis.
Abstract
Background & Aims
Autoimmune hepatitis episodes have been described following SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination but their pathophysiology remains unclear. Here, we report the case of a 52-year-old male, presenting with bimodal episodes of acute hepatitis, each occurring 2-3 weeks after BNT162b2 mRNA vaccination and sought to identify the underlying immune correlates. The patient received first oral budesonide, relapsed, but achieved remission under systemic steroids.
Methods
Imaging mass cytometry for spatial immune profiling was performed on liver biopsy tissue. Flow cytometry was performed to dissect CD8 T cell phenotypes and identify SARS-CoV-2-specific and EBV-specific T cells longitudinally. Vaccine-induced antibodies were determined by ELISA. Data was correlated with clinical labs.
Results
Analysis of the hepatic tissue revealed an immune infiltrate quantitatively dominated by activated cytotoxic CD8 T cells with panlobular distribution. An enrichment of CD4 T cells, B cells, plasma cells and myeloid cells was also observed compared to controls. The intrahepatic infiltrate showed enrichment for CD8 T cells with SARS-CoV-2-specificity compared to the peripheral blood. Notably, hepatitis severity correlated longitudinally with an activated cytotoxic phenotype of peripheral SARS-CoV-2-specific, but not EBV-specific CD8+ T cells or vaccine-induced immunoglobulins.
Conclusions
COVID19 vaccination can elicit a distinct T cell-dominant immune-mediated hepatitis with a unique pathomechanism associated with vaccination induced antigen-specific tissue-resident immunity requiring systemic immunosuppression.
Lay summary
Liver inflammation is observed during SARS-CoV-2 infection but can also occur in some individuals after vaccination and shares some typical features with autoimmune liver disease. In this report, we show that highly activated T cells accumulate and are evenly distributed in the different areas of the liver in a patient with liver inflammation following SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. Moreover, within these liver infiltrating T cells, we observed an enrichment of T cells that are reactive to SARS-CoV-2, suggesting that these vaccine-induced cells can contribute to the liver inflammation in this context.
Daily Expose added:
In Layman’s terms, what the scientists discovered is that liver inflammation (hepatitis) can occur in some individuals after vaccination and shares some typical features with autoimmune liver disease.
This is caused by highly activated T cells (also called T lymphocyte, a type of leukocyte [white blood cell] that is an essential part of the immune system) accumulating in the different areas of the liver.
Within these liver infiltrating T-cells is an enrichment of T-cells that are reactive to SARS-CoV-2, suggesting Covid-19 vaccine-induced cells are contributing to liver inflammation.
Several months ago, a study in the peer-reviewed Journal of Hepatology provided “conclusive evidence of vaccine-induced immune-mediated hepatitis with a rapid onset of liver injury after the first Moderna dose.”
Study States “Confirmed” Immune Mediated Hepatitis with the Moderna COVID-19 Jab
The UK researchers concluded that “inadvertent re-exposure led to worsening liver injury with deranged synthetic function.”
They noted that the “mRNA vaccine pathway triggers pro-inflammatory cytokines including interferon and cross-reactivity has been illustrated between the antibodies against the spike protein and self-antigens.”
The NHS began rolling out the Pfizer/BioNTech mRNA COVID-19 injection to 5-11-year-old children in April 2022.
Almost five million children in this age group are eligible for two doses of the vaccine following updated JCVI guidance, which recommended children can benefit from non-urgent offer of the vaccine.
With some schools having already broken up for the Easter break, hundreds of sites will be providing vaccinations from today with more sites coming online throughout the week.
The majority of vaccines for 5 to 11 year olds will take place at local vaccination centres or community pharmacies outside of school hours and are available to book through the online booking service or by calling 119.
There are also convenient vaccine walk-ins across the country which families can find through the NHS grab a jab website.
NHS staff have already been vaccinating children aged 5 to 11 who have medical conditions that put them at increased risk from COVID-19 or who live with someone with a weakened immune system.
Since the NHS National Booking System opened for families of 5 to 11 year olds to book a COVID vaccine for their child on Saturday, 37,000 have already booked an appointment.
Other countries, such as the United States, have already authorized the experimental COVID-19 shots for children as young as five.
While some health officials are ruling out the COVID-19 shots as a potential cause for the rise in hepatitis in children, it's naïve to think they'll conduct an honest investigation.
Too much time and money have gone into pushing the false narrative that the COVID-19 shots are 'safe and effective' for public health officials to admit they were wrong.
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