Serum level of interleukin-8 and interleukin-10 as predictors for response to interferonribavirin combined therapy

ABSTRACT

Background: In Egypt, the prevalence of hepatitis C virus infection is high [about 20%]. Chronic hepatitis C [CHC] is a slowly progressive disease complicated by liver cirrhosis, hepatic decompensation, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Treatment of CHC with pegylated interferon-alpha [peg-IFN-alpha]/ribavirin [RBV] combination therapy was the standard of care therapy until 2014 and is used until now in some regimens with new direct acting antiviral drugs. Some hepatitis C virus proteins [core, E2, NS4A, NS5A, and NS2] induce interleukin-8 [IL-8], which inhibits the antiviral activity of IFN-alpha. It was found to be significantly higher in patients with nonsustained virological response [non-SVR] than in patients with SVR to IFN/RBV therapy. IL-10 is a Th2 cytokine, and an imbalance between Th1/Th2 immune response could influence the clinical course of CHC and response to treatment. Some studies showed that pretreatment IL-10 serum level is much higher in patients with non-SVR than in those with SVR to therapy and could be considered as a good predictor for response to IFN/RBV therapy