BMC Infectious Diseases (Jan 2024)

Unraveling IL-17 and IL-22 role in occult hepatitis C versus chronic hepatitis C virus infection

  • Sherif Elbaz,
  • Nasser Mousa,
  • Alaa Elmetwalli,
  • Ahmed Abdel-Razik,
  • Mohamed Salah,
  • Amr ElHammady,
  • Mostafa Abdelsalam,
  • Eman Abdelkader,
  • Niveen El-wakeel,
  • Waleed Eldars,
  • Ola El-Emam,
  • Ahmed Elbeltagy,
  • Mohamed Shaheen,
  • Hossam El-Zamek,
  • Eman Mousa,
  • Ahmed Deiab,
  • Ayman Elgamal,
  • Alaa Habib

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-024-09032-6
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 24, no. 1
pp. 1 – 7

Abstract

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Abstract Background Cytokines play a crucial role in regulating the function of the immune system by controlling the production, differentiation, and activity of immune cells. Occult hepatitis C virus (OHCV) infection can lead to liver damage, including cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. This study investigates the immunopathogenic impact of the cytokines IL-17 and IL-22 in OHCV infection compared to chronic hepatitis C (CHC) infection. Methods We studied three groups of patients: 35 with OHCV, 100 untreated patients with CHC, and 30 healthy control subjects. All subjects underwent physical examination and biochemical testing. We used the sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method to measure serum IL-17 and IL-22 levels in all groups. Results Compared to the occult and control groups, the CHC group had significantly higher serum IL-17 levels (p < 0.001). The occult group also had higher serum IL-17 levels compared to the control group (p < 0.0001). There were no significant differences in IL-22 levels across the research groups. In the OHCV group, individuals with moderate inflammation (A2-A3) had significantly higher serum IL-17 levels than those with minimal inflammation (A0-A1), while in the CHC group, this difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.601). Neither the occult nor the CHC groups showed a correlation between serum IL-22 and inflammatory activity. There was no significant correlation between the levels of IL-17 or IL-22 and the stage of fibrosis/cirrhosis in either group. ROC curves were calculated for serum IL-17 and IL-22 levels and occult HCV infection, with cut-off values set at ≤ 32.1 pg/ml and < 14.3 pg/ml for IL-17 and IL-22, respectively. The AUROC (95%CI) was significantly higher for IL-17 than IL-22 (0.829 (0.732–0.902) vs. 0.504 (0.393–0.614), p < 0.001), suggesting that IL-17 has a stronger correlation with infection risk than IL-22. Conclusion This study suggests that IL-17 may be involved in the immunopathogenesis of OHCV infection, especially in patients with moderate inflammation.

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