Table 1.
Demographic, serological, and hepatic histopathological characteristics.
| Characteristics | Healthy control (n = 15) | Chronic HCV infection | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Total (n = 90) |
PR Group (n = 30) |
DAAs Group (n = 60) |
||
| Age | 40 ± 14 | 42 ± 10 | 42 ± 10 | 42 ± 11 |
| Gender, male/female | 6/9 | 37/53 | 14/16 | 23/37 |
| Obesity, n (%) | 0 | 7 (7.78%) | 3 (10.00%) | 4 (6.67%) |
| Alcohol-related, n (%) | 0 | 12 (13.37%) | 3 (10.00%) | 9 (15.00%) |
| The course of infection (year) | — | 8.24 ± 7.48 | 6.82 ± 7.46 | 8.95 ± 7.82 |
| Compensated cirrhosis, n (%) | — | 18 (20.00%) | 2 (6.67%) | 16 (26.67%) |
| ALT (U/L) | 22.67 ± 7.12 | 71.95 ± 46.04* | 62.50 ± 40.06* | 76.68 ± 62.35* |
| HCV RNA load (log IU/mL) | — | 5.12 ± 1.19 | 4.98 ± 1.20 | 5.16 ± 1.35 |
| HCV genotype, n (%) | ||||
| genotype 1b | 55 (61.11%) | 15 (50.00%) 9 | 40 (66.67%) | |
| genotype 2a | — | 22 (24.44%) | (30.00%) 3 | 13 (21.67%) |
| genotype 3 | 5 (5.56%) | (10.00%) 3 | 2 (3.33%) | |
| untyped | 8 (8.89%) | (10.00%) | 5 (8.33%) | |
| Histopathologic features | ||||
| HAI | 0.46 ± 0.65 | 4.47 ± 2.38* | 4.36 ± 2.54* | 4.53 ± 3.14* |
| Fibrosis | 0.20 ± 0.41 | 2.77 ± 1.65* | 2.60 ± 1.33* | 2.85 ± 1.92* |
| Serum IP-10 (pg/mL) | 136.25 ± 64.43 | 430.03 ± 120.52* | 424.97 ± 115.58* | 432.56 ± 125.29* |
| Hepatic IP-10 mRNA | 1 | 2.08 ± 0.47* | 2.03 ± 0.43* | 2.11 ± 0.52* |
| Hepatic CXCR3 mRNA | 1 | 4.08 ± 1.23* | 4.06 ± 1.18* | 4.09 ± 1.26* |
| Hepatic IP-10 Protein | 1 | 2.88 ± 0.78* | 2.87 ± 0.77* | 2.89 ± 0.78* |
| Hepatic CXCR3 Protein | 1 | 5.44 ± 1.97 | 5.40 ± 1.89* | 5.46 ± 2.01* |
HCV, hepatitis C virus; PR, Peg-IFNα 2a/ribavirin; DAAs, direct-acting antiviral agents; ALT, alanine aminotransferase; AST, aspartate aminotransferase; HAI, histological activity index; IP-10, interferon gamma-induced protein 10; *Compared with the healthy control group, p < 0.05.