Markers for early diagnosis of serious liver pathologies after recovery from hepatitis C are identified

In a study conducted by scientists from the Higher Scientific Research Council (VNIS), it was possible to identify markers for the early diagnosis of serious liver pathologies after recovery from hepatitis C (HCV).

New combinations of antiviral drugs against hepatitis C virus (HCV) have revolutionized the treatment of chronic hepatitis C, with the virus being eradicated in virtually all treated patients. However, the impact that eradication of the infection has on the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (the most common type of liver cancer) in these patients is unknown, and this process is not fully reversible despite cure of HCV.

Now, a study published in the Journal of Medical Virology has identified a small number of genes that remain abnormally expressed in cells free of infection. These changes are consistent with those seen in liver biopsies from virologically cured patients and show the value of infection models used to look for markers of post-treatment liver health in patients after infection has cleared, which could facilitate follow-up of these patients.

In a study led by Pablo Gastaminza, a researcher at the National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB-CSIC), they used two models of persistent infection in cell cultures to analyse and compare differences in gene expression levels after complete clearance of the viral infection.

“We describe a general change in the expression of infection-related genes after resolution of the infection and how, however, a small number of genes continue to be abnormally expressed in cells that are now free of infection,” Gastaminza said.

Victoria Castro, CNB-CSIC researcher and first author of the paper, describes in detail the novelty of the work: “The comparison of the results obtained in the two types of cell culture models suggests that permanent transcriptional changes could be established either by a selection phenomenon, or by cellular subpopulations with greater competitive capacity in the case of proliferative cultures, or due to a direct effect of viral replication on the regulation of cellular gene expression. In addition, some of the changes observed in both models are compatible with those observed in liver biopsies from patients cured of chronic infection.

In addition, the researcher continues, “these infection models may provide relevant information for the search for markers of liver health after recovery, which may facilitate the follow-up of these patients who are not exempt from the risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma. On the other hand, these data provide new insights into the direct contribution of viral replication to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma.”

This work is the result of a collaboration between researchers from the CIBER Liver and Digestive Diseases (CIBEREHD), Pablo Gastamins from CNB-CSIC and Sofia Pérez del Pulgar from IDIBAPS in Barcelona, ​​in conjunction with the Bioinformatics Unit Genomics and Proteomics of CNB-CSIC.