Effect of HCV core and core+1/S on pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokine and chemokine gene expression

摘要

Pro- (IL6, TNFalpha) and anti-inflammatory (IL-10) cytokines and chemokines (MIP-1beta, IL8, MCP-1) may play a pivotal role in the development of inflammation that characterises chronic HCV infection. The HCV core protein has been implicated in modulating host immune response, nevertheless this may be attributed partly to the newly discovered core+1 protein, overlapping the core sequence. A putative effect of core and core+1 on cytokine and chemokine gene expression in both immune and hepatic cells, could account for the establishment of chronic inflammation in HCV patients. This study reports altered cytokine and chemokine mRNA levels in hepatoma cells and macrophages in which core and core+1/S have been ectopically expressed.