title: Role of ApoB-516C/T promoter gene polymorphism in the risk of Hepatitis C virus infection in Egyptian patients and in gender susceptibility.
abstract: At least 1 in 10 of the Egyptian population aged 15-59 is burdened with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, stamping Egypt the highest country harboring HCV worldwide. Considerable evidence supported the involvement of host genetic factors in the pathogenesis of HCV and the possibility of implementation in target therapies. ApoB gene polymorphisms are postulated to affect the susceptibility of HCV infection. Hence, we aimed to evaluate the relationship between ApoB-516C/T promoter gene polymorphism and HCV infection in a cohort of Egyptian patients and to explore whether higher levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) might compete with lipoviral particles (LVP) in the binding to LDL receptor (LDLR), thus escaping infection. Ninety-seven HCV patients and 96 matched controls were enrolled in this study. We genotyped ApoB-516C/T using PCR-RFLP method. ApoB concentrations were measured by immunoturbidimetric assay. The genotype and the allele frequencies of ApoB-516C/T promoter gene polymorphism in cases were statistically insignificant compared with healthy individuals (P = 0.109, 0.125, respectively). Sex stratification showed significantly lower counts of C/T genotype in female patients compared with female controls (P = 0.011, OR = 0.132, 95% CI = 0.026-0.657). Significantly higher levels of LDL and ApoB were detected in the control group (P < 0.001). This study shows that the ApoB-516C/T promoter gene polymorphism has no impact on the risk of HCV infection. However, the C/T genotype may be a protective factor for our female cohort. Further studies with larger samples are needed to verify this genetic gender diversity. Additionally, high levels of LDL and ApoB might prevent HCV infection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pathology, Kasr Al-Ainy, School of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Rania H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Khalifa
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pathology, Kasr Al-Ainy, School of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Dalia A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Labib
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pathology, Kasr Al-Ainy, School of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Mohamed A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Kamel
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pathology, Kasr Al-Ainy, School of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Rasha Mohamad Hosny
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-2334-7440
authors.initials: RMH
authors.lastname: Shahin
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pathology, Kasr Al-Ainy, School of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Dina M Rasheed
authors.initials: DMR
authors.lastname: Bahgat
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pathology, Kasr Al-Ainy, School of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Nermine Magdi
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Riad
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pathology, Kasr Al-Ainy, School of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Engy
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: El Khateeb
authors.affiliation: Department of Tropical Medicine, Kasr Al-Ainy, School of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Amr M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: El-Deeb
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunology, Theodor Bilharz Research Institute, Giza, Egypt.
authors.forename: Marwa
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-9751-8129
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hassan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D053299:Apolipoprotein B-100 / Q000097:blood* / Q000235:genetics*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004534:Egypt; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D060005:Genotyping Techniques; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009391:Nephelometry and Turbidimetry; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012737:Sex Factors; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: C569471:APOB protein, human; D053299:Apolipoprotein B-100
keywords: ApoB promoter gene polymorphism; Egypt; HCV; LDLR; LVP