Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is the most common blood borne infection in the U.S. with estimates of 4 million HCV-infected individuals in the U.S. and 170 million worldwide1. The majority (70%–80%) of HCV infections persist and about 30% of individuals with persistent infection develop chronic liver disease, including cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma2. Epidemiological, viral, and host factors have been associated with the differences in HCV clearance or persistence and studies have demonstrated that a strong host immune response against HCV favors viral clearance3,4. Thus, variation in genes involved in the immune response may contribute to the ability to clear the virus. In a recent genome-wide association study, a single nucleotide polymorphism (rs12979860) 3kb upstream of the IL28B gene, which encodes the type III interferon IFN-λ3, was shown to associate strongly with more than a 2-fold difference in response to HCV drug treatment5. To determine the potential effect of rs12979860 variation on outcome to HCV infection in a natural history setting, we genotyped this variant in HCV cohorts comprised of individuals who spontaneously cleared the virus (N = 388) or had persistent infection (N = 620). We show that the C/C genotype strongly enhances resolution of HCV infection amongst individuals of both European and African ancestry (European: OR = 0.38, p = 10−7; African: OR = 0.32, p = 10−4; combined: OR = 0.33, p <10−12). To date, this is the strongest and most significant genetic effect associated with natural clearance of HCV, and these results implicate a primary role for IL28B in resolution of HCV infection.

Natural killer (NK) cells provide a central defense against viral infection by using inhibitory and activation receptors for major histocompatibility complex class I molecules as a means of controlling their activity. We show that genes encoding the inhibitory NK cell receptor KIR2DL3 and its human leukocyte antigen C group 1 (HLA-C1) ligand directly influence resolution of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. This effect was observed in Caucasians and African Americans with expected low infectious doses of HCV but not in those with high-dose exposure, in whom the innate immune response is likely overwhelmed. The data strongly suggest that inhibitory NK cell interactions are important in determining antiviral immunity and that diminished inhibitory responses confer protection against HCV.

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Coinfection with human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) is common; worldwide, an estimated 10% of HIV-infected persons have chronic hepatitis B. Because the incidence of traditional acquired immunodeficiency syndrome-related opportunistic infections has decreased with successful anti-HIV therapy, liver disease has emerged as a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in HIV-infected individuals. HIV infection negatively impacts all phases of the natural history of hepatitis B leading to increased rates of persistent infection, higher HBV DNA levels, lower rates of hepatitis B e antigen loss, increased cirrhosis and liver-related mortality, and increased risk of hepatocellular carcinoma at lower CD4؉ T cell counts. The management of hepatitis B in HIV infection is complicated by the dual activity of several nucleoside analogs, the more rapid development of lamivudine-resistant HBV in patients who are HIV-positive, and the paucity of studies in this population. Until further research emerges on the optimal treatment for this population, data from HBV monoinfected persons will need to be extrapolated to the HIV-HBV coinfected population. Further research is also needed to determine the mechanism(s) for the increased liver disease progression and optimal treatment goals. (HEPATOLOGY 2009;49: S138-S145.)

Background Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections occur worldwide and either spontaneously resolve or persist and markedly increase the person’s lifetime risk of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Although HCV persistence occurs more often in persons of African ancestry and in persons with a genetic variant near IL28B, the genetic basis is not well understood. Objective To evaluate the host genetic basis for spontaneous resolution of HCV infection. Design Two-stage genome wide association study (GWAS). Setting 13 international multicenter study sites. Patients 919 individuals with serum HCV antibodies but no HCV RNA (spontaneous resolution) and 1482 individuals with serum HCV antibodies and RNA (persistence). Measurements Frequencies of 792,721 SNPs. Results Differences in allele frequencies between persons with spontaneous resolution and persistence were identified on chromosomes 19q13.13 and 6p21.32. On chromosome 19, allele frequency differences localized near IL28B and included rs12979860 (overall per-allele OR = 0.45, P = 2.17 × 10−30) and 10 additional SNPs spanning 55,000 bases. On chromosome 6, allele frequency differences localized near genes for class II human leukocyte antigens (HLA) and included rs4273729 (overall per-allele OR= 0.59, P = 1.71 × 10−16) near DQB1*03:01 and an additional 116 SNPs spanning 1,090,000 base pairs. The associations in chromosomes 19 and 6 were independent, additive, and explain an estimated 14.9% (95% CI: 8.5–22.6%) of the variation in HCV resolution in those of European-Ancestry, and 15.8% (95% CI:4.4–31.0%) in individuals of African-Ancestry. Replication of the chromosome 6 SNP, rs4272729 in an additional 746 individuals confirmed the findings (p=0.015). Limitations Epigenetic effects were not studied. Conclusions IL28B and HLA class II are independently associated with spontaneous resolution of HCV infection and SNPs marking IL28B and DQB1*03:01 may explain ~15% of spontaneous resolution of HCV infection.

:01), whereas 550A/G does not. 496A/G has a stronger effect than any individual HLA-DPB1 or DPA1 allele and any other HLA alleles that showed an association with HBV recovery in our European-American cohort. The 496GG genotype, which confers recessive susceptibility to HBV persistence, also associates in a recessive manner with significantly higher levels of HLA-DP surface protein and transcript level expression in healthy donors, suggesting that differences in expression of HLA-DP may increase the risk of persistent HBV infection.

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