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Approximately 60% of patients who are infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) exhibit chronic infection (black patients more often fall into this group) and are at risk for cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma, whereas 40% show spontaneous resolution (white and Asian patients more often fall into this group). In an international study, researchers evaluated whether patients' genomes explain this variance. They included 919 patients with HCV antibodies but no HCV RNA (i.e., those with spontaneous resolution) and 1482 patients with HCV antibodies and HCV RNA (i.e., those with persistent infections); all patients underwent genomic testing.
Differences in allele frequencies were identified on chromosomes 19, near the interleukin-28B gene, and ch…