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©2009 Baishideng. All rights reserved.
Hepatitis C virus and peripheral blood mononuclear cell reservoirs Patricia Baré
Patricia Baré, Virology Laboratory, Instituto de Investigaciones Hematológicas, Academia Nacional de Medicina, Buenos Aires 1425, Argentina
Author contributions: Baré P solely contributed to this paper.
Correspondence to: Patricia Baré, PhD, Virology Laboratory, Instituto de Investigaciones Hematológicas, Academia Nacional de Medicina, Pacheco de Melo, Buenos Aires 3081, Argentina. pbare@hematologia.anm.edu.ar
Telephone: +54-11-48050712 Fax: +54-11-48039475
Received: March 12, 2009
Revised: September 2, 2009
Accepted: September 9, 2009
Published online: October 31, 2009
Revised: September 2, 2009
Accepted: September 9, 2009
Published online: October 31, 2009
Abstract
The existence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in extrahepatic sites has been widely demonstrated. Since peripheral blood mononuclear cells have been the most investigated, compelling evidence of an association with HCV has been shown. Different studies have revealed that HCV RNA can persist and replicate in immune cells but the relevance of its presence and persistence over time is still unknown. As the contribution of this extrahepatic reservoir could have several clinical implications in viral transmission, treatment response and disease pathogenesis, future studies are required to improve our knowledge of the extrahepatic manifestations of HCV and its possible consequences.
Keywords: Hepatitis C virus, Peripheral blood mononuclear cell, Reservoirs, Lymphotropism, Replication