Table 1. Clinical Characteristics of Uninfected Participants With and Without HCV-Specific IFN-γ Responses at Baseline a.
| Clinical Characteristic | Group A, IFN-γ Responses Present | Group B, IFN-γ Responses Absent | P value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total participants | 10 | 43 | |
| Sex b | |||
| Male | 2 (20) | 17 (40) | 0.299 |
| Female | 8 (80) | 26 (60) | |
| Median age, (IQR) , y c | 24 (18-27) | 24 (21-26) | 0.678 |
| Ethnicity b | |||
| Caucasian | 8 (80) | 36 (84) | 1.000 |
| Other | 2 (20) | 7 (16) | |
| Estimated duration of injecting , y c | |||
| Median (IQR) | 4 (1-9) | 6 (3-9) | 0.674 |
| Number of injections in the past month c | |||
| Median (IQR) | 20 (9-26) | 20 (9-41) | 0.569 |
| Reported sharing needles ever b | 7 (70) | 21 (49) | 0.320 |
| Reported sharing needles in the last three months b | 2 (20) | 10 (23) | 1.000 |
| Main drug injected in the past three months b | |||
| Heroin | 6 (60) | 28 (65) | 1.000 |
| Other | 4 (40) | 15 (35) | |
| Number received treatment for drug use d, c | 6 (60) | 28 (65) | 1.000 |
| HLA type e, b | |||
| C1C1 | 1 (10) | 14 (33) | 0.239 |
| C1C2 | 4 (40) | 19 (44) | |
| C2C2 | 4 (40) | 5 (9) | |
| IFNL3 genotype e, b | |||
| rs8099917 - TT | 8 (80) | 26 (60) | 0.431 |
| - GT | 2 (20) | 8 (19) | |
| - GG | 0 (0) | 3 (6) | |
| rs12980275 - AA | 7 (70) | 21 (49) | 0.482 |
| - GA | 3 (30) | 14 (32) | |
| - GG | 0 (0) | 4 (9) | |
| rs12979860 - CC | 7 (70) | 20 (47) | 0.478 |
| - CT | 3 (3) | 13 (30) | |
| - TT | 0 (0) | 7 (16) | |
| Favourable HLA and IFNL3 b | |||
| rs8099917 – TT and HLA C1C1 | 1 (10) | 9 (21) | 0.663 |
| rs12980275 – AA and HLA C1C1 | 1 (10) | 6 (14) | 1.000 |
| rs12979860 – CC and HLA C1C1 | 1 (10) | 6 (14) | 1.000 |
a Number (%) reported, unless otherwise specified.
b Fisher’s exact tests were used for categorical variables as appropriate. A significance level of 0.05 was used for all analyses.
c Non-parametric analysis was performed using wilcoxon rank sum (Mann-Whitney) tests.
d Treatment for drug use may include pharmacotherapy, detoxification, and counseling.
e The HLA typing and IFNL3 genotype does not equal 100% as some participants were untypeable. Favourable HLA type and IFNL3 genotype are in bold.