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Okayama University researchers revealed a new recognition mechanism of HCV infection

June 21, 2013

Researchers in the Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences have revealed a novel host factor that is associated with a new recognition mechanism of hepatitis C (HCV) infection by host cells.

The findings were published online May 23 in the journal PLoS Pathogens.
http://www.plospathogens.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.ppat.1003345

The identified host factor is associated with the innate immune response in cultured cells. If the expression of the host factor in patients with chronic hepatitis C could be controlled artificially, the amount of virus in the patients would be expected to decrease.

H. Dansako, N. Kato and their colleagues in the collaborative research group from Okayama University and the University of North Carolina in the US have identified a novel host factor that recognizes double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) derived from HCV replication as non-self.
The host factor is called a class A scavenger receptor. In HCV-infected cells, dsRNA produced by the virus is recognized by RIG-I. A part of dsRNA is released out of the infected cells. The extracellular dsRNA is recognized and transported into uninfected cells by the class A scavenger receptor, which activates anti-viral mechanisms.

The study showed that HCV replication could be restricted by the expression of the class A scavenger receptor in the liver of hepatitis C patients. If the expression of the receptor could be controlled artificially, innate immune response would be enhanced and HCV load could be decreased drastically in patients with hepatitis C.

Other authors on the paper are Daisuke Yamane, Christoph Welsch, David R. McGivern, Fengyu Hu and Stanley M. Lemon, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA.

Contact Information:
Mototaka Senda, Ph.D.
Intellectual Property Office, Organization for Research Promotion and Collaboration
US Representative, Fremont, California USA
TEL: 1-510-797-0907
Email: takasenda@okayama-u.ac.jp

Nobuyuki Kato, Ph.D.
Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan

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