Single cell analysis of HCV-infected patient hepatocytes: The science is no longer science fiction

摘要

The most basic aspects of hepatitis C virus (HCV) biology remain a mystery in part because studying HCV in its native environment, the human hepatocyte in the liver, has been fraught with technical challenges. Autofluorescence, low levels of virus replication and viral protein per infected cell, and limited availability of high-quality tissue are just a few of the challenges complicating in situ detection of HCV RNA and antigen in the liver. The study by Kandathil et al, published in this issue of Gastroenterology, describes a clever and unique approach to circumvent these technical issues that have historically plagued efforts to understand HCV biology in the liver at single cell resolution.