These studies expand our understanding of the relationship of intestinal microbiota with fibrosis development by identifying FN as a TLR4 dependent mediator of the matrix and vascular changes that characterize cirrhosis.
The study included nine patients with cirrhosis and TLR4D299G and/or T399I polymorphisms, and 10 wild-type patients matched for age, sex and degree of liver failure.
The present study aimed to investigate the association between TLR4 mutations (Asp299Gly and Thr399Ile) and CD14 polymorphisms (base pair -159 and -260) with HBV-related cirrhosis in Chinese Han patients.
Furthermore, TLR-4 was highly expressed in CD14 <sup>+</sup> CD16 <sup>+</sup> monocytes isolated from patients with cirrhosis, whereas Tim-3 was negatively regulated by endotoxin and the correlation coefficient was -0.5287.
Expression of TLR2 was up-regulated (P < 0.01 to P < 0.05) in the PBMC of patients with high serum endotoxin levels, while TLR4 expression in patients at Child-Pugh stage A was down-regulated, irrespective of the origin (alcoholic or viral) of cirrhosis.
Therefore, the aim of this review is to present the recent data regarding the important roles of TLR4 in HBV recognition and regulation of immune responses against this virus, and also its roles in the pathogenesis of cirrhosis and HCC as complications of prolonged hepatitis B infections.