Figure 2.

CD8⁺ T cell response in HBV-related HCC. In the HBV-infected individuals, there are several kinds of CD8⁺ T cell populations including exhausted HBV-specific CD8⁺ T cells, HBV core-specific and polymerase-specific CD8⁺ T cells with long-term memory-like phenotype, effector CD8⁺ T cells and HBV non-specific CD8⁺ T cells. The function of each CD8⁺ T cell population is different but possibly promote the development of HCC together. Additionally, regulatory CD4⁺ T cells (Tregs) also play a critical role in the stage of HCC for immune escape, for example inducing CD8⁺ T cell exhaustion.