Interleukin-28B (IL-28B) and Interferon –Gamma (INF-γ) Levels in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C Viral (HCV) Infection

Objectives: We aimed to studythe effect of Schsitosoma mansoni co-infection with hepatitis C virus (HCV) on IL-28B levels. Design: We collected plasma from107outpatients(range30–81 years old) from six governates of Delta, Egypt attending Kasr Al-Aini Hospital, Cairo, Egyptin 2012–2014. Subjects were divided to three groups, 35 healthy controls, 50naïve chronic HCV patientsand 22S. mansoni/HCVco-infected patients.For all participants,anti-schistosomal antibodies levels, hepatitis B surface antigens (HBsAg), HCV viral loadand routine liver function tests were measured. We assayed IL-28B and IFN-γ plasma levels for all participants. Results: We found that IL-28B levelsweresignificantly higher in S. mansoni/HCV co-infected patients than in HCV mono-infection. IFN-γ and IL-28B levels showed positive correlation in both infected groups. Patients with high HCV viral load had significantly higher IFN-γ and IL-28B levelswhether suffering from mono- or co-infection. Conclusions: A strong link between IFN-γ and IL-28B in naïve chronic HCV patients whether mono- or co-infected with S. mansoni. This suggeststhat co-infection with S. mansoni might not affect IFN-γ levels, however, significantly increases IL-28B levels. Therefore, IL-28B plasma levels might be a useful novel biomarker forprognosis and therapy ofS. mansoni/HCV co-infection