Serum levels of soluble interferon Alfa/Beta receptor as an inhibitory factor of interferon in the patients with chronic hepatitis C.

Abstract

Human serum contains a soluble form of interferon alfa/beta (sIFN alpha/beta) receptors, the functional and clinical significance of which has not been investigated in patients with chronic hepatitis C. In the present study, serum levels of sIFN alpha/beta receptor were assessed in 81 patients with chronic hepatitis C and correlated with the effectiveness of IFN therapy in these patients. Serum levels of sIFN alpha/beta receptor were significantly higher in patients with chronic hepatitis C than in healthy control patients (P <.0001). In these patients, serum levels of sIFN alpha/beta receptor were correlated with those of alanine transaminase (ALT) (P <.05), (2'-5')serum oligo(A) synthetase (2-5AS) (P <.0001), and pathological stages of liver fibrosis (P <.01). In 55 patients with chronic hepatitis C who underwent IFN therapy, there was an inverse correlation between the pretherapeutic serum levels of sIFN alpha/beta receptor and the rate of increase in serum levels of 2-5AS after the start of IFN (P <.01). Pretherapeutic serum levels of sIFN alpha/beta receptor were significantly lower in patients who showed sustained response to IFN therapy compared with those who did not respond to the therapy (P <.05). Multivariate analysis showed that low levels of serum sIFN alpha/beta receptor (</=4.0 ng/mL) (P <.05) and serological hepatitis C virus genotype II (P <.05) were independent variables contributing to sustained response to IFN therapy. Thus, pretherapeutic serum levels of sIFN alpha/beta receptor were correlated with the effectiveness of IFN therapy, suggesting that sIFN alpha/beta receptor suppresses the effectiveness of IFN therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis C.

• Authors: E Mizukoshi, S Kaneko, K Kaji, S Terasaki, E Matsushita, M Muraguchi, Y Ohmoto, K Kobayashi
• Journal: Hepatology (Baltimore, Md.) (Hepatology) Vol. 30 Issue 5 Pg. 1325-31 (Nov 1999) ISSN: 0270-9139 [Print] United States
• PMID: 10534358 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Antiviral Agents
• Interferon alpha-2
• Interferon-alpha
• Membrane Proteins
• RNA, Viral
• Receptors, Interferon
• Recombinant Proteins
• Receptor, Interferon alpha-beta
• Alanine Transaminase
• 2',5'-Oligoadenylate Synthetase

Topics

• 2',5'-Oligoadenylate Synthetase (blood)
• Adult
• Aged
• Alanine Transaminase (blood)
• Antiviral Agents (therapeutic use)
• Female
• Hepatitis C, Chronic (blood, drug therapy, immunology)
• Humans
• Interferon alpha-2
• Interferon-alpha (therapeutic use)
• Liver (pathology)
• Male
• Membrane Proteins
• Middle Aged
• RNA, Viral (blood)
• Receptor, Interferon alpha-beta
• Receptors, Interferon (blood)
• Recombinant Proteins
• Reference Values
• Regression Analysis
• Treatment Outcome