Objective To measure the expression of T- cell immunoglobulin- and mucin domain- 3- containing molecule 3( TIM- 3)on CD8+T cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cells( PBMCs) among patients with chronic hepatitis B( CHB) and to investigate the effect of common gamma- chain cytokines on the expression of TIM- 3 on CD8+T cells in these patients. Methods Fifteen previously untreated patients with CHB who visited the Department of Infectious Diseases,Tangdu Hospital,Fourth Military Medical University,from January to May,2014,as well as 8 healthy controls,were included in the study. Blood was collected from these subjects,and PBMCs were isolated from blood by Ficoll density gradient centrifugation. PBMCs were separately stimulated with gamma- chain cytokines,interleukin( IL) 2,IL- 7,IL- 15,and IL- 21,and anti- CD3 / CD28,and the untreated cells were used as a negative control. After four days of culture,PBMCs were stained with monoclonal antibody. Flow cytometry was used to measure the expression of TIM- 3 on CD8+T cells. Comparison of continuous data was made by independent- samples t test. Results Compared with the untreated group,the anti- CD3 / CD28,IL- 2,IL- 15,and IL- 7 groups had significantly increased expression of TIM- 3 on CD8+T cells( 9. 629% ± 9. 916%,P = 0. 000 1; 3. 817%± 2. 694%,P = 0. 000 6; 5. 772% ± 4. 732%,P = 0. 005 4; 3. 560% ± 2. 045%,P = 0. 030 2),while the IL- 21 group had nonsignificantly increased expression of TIM- 3 on CD8+T cells( 2. 503% ± 2. 117%,P = 0. 934 1). Conclusion Anti- CD3 / CD28 and gamma- chain cytokines IL- 2,IL- 7,and IL- 15 can effectively upregulate the expression of TIM- 3 on CD8+T cells in patients with CHB. It indicates that the inhibition of them can not only reduce the expression of TIM- 3,but also may enhance the killing function of CD8+T cells in patients with CHB.