Interferon-lambda genotype and low serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in patients with chronic hepatitis C infection

✍ Scribed by Josephine H. Li; Xiang Qian Lao; Hans L. Tillmann; Jennifer Rowell; Keyur Patel; Alexander Thompson; Sunil Suchindran; Andrew J. Muir; John R. Guyton; Stephen D. Gardner; John G. McHutchison; Jeanette J. McCarthy

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 312 KB
• Volume: 51
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0270-9139
• DOI: 10.1002/hep.23592

✦ Synopsis

Recently, genetic polymorphisms occurring in the interferon (IFN)-lambda gene region were associated with response to IFN-based treatment of hepatitis C infection. Both infection with the hepatitis C virus and IFN therapy are associated with decreased serum cholesterol and high cholesterol has been associated with increased likelihood to respond to IFN. We sought to determine if the IFN-lambda gene variant was also associated with serum lipid levels in chronic hepatitis C patients. We compared genotypes of the rs12979860 polymorphism, located proximal to the IL28 gene, with serum lipid and apolipoprotein levels in 746 subjects with chronic hepatitis C virus infection, not currently undergoing treatment, using multivariable analysis of variance. Levels of total cholesterol (P = 6.0 x 10(-4)), apolipoprotein B (P = 1.3 x 10(-6)) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol (P = 8.9 x 10(-10)) were significantly higher in subjects carrying the rs12979860 CC responder genotype compared with those with the CT or TT genotype. Levels of triglycerides (P = 0.03), apolipoprotein A-I (P = 0.06), and apolipoprotein E (P = 0.01) were slightly lower in the rs12979860 CC genotype group, whereas levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (P = 0.78) and apolipoprotein C-III (P = 0.74) did not vary by rs12979860 genotype.

Conclusion:

Our results suggest that low levels of ldl cholesterol in chronic hepatitis c patients may be a marker of host endogenous ifn response to hepatitis c and that subjects with the rs12979860 cc responder genotype may have a lower endogenous ifn response to the virus.