Q J Med 2001; 94: 287-291
© 2001 Association of Physicians
Editorial |
MHC and the viral hepatitides
Division of Medicine, Imperial College School of Medicine, St Mary's Hospital, London
The outcome of a number of infectious diseases varies significantly between individuals. This is particularly evident for hepatitis B and hepatitis C virus infections, where the outcomes may range from asymptomatic self-limiting infection to fulminant liver failure or to cirrhosis with hepatocellular carcinoma. The factors which determine the outcome in a particular individual are largely unknown, but for convenience can be classified into three groups: viral determinants, environmental determinants and host determinants. The response of an individual to the infection is fundamentally controlled by their genetic makeup, and therefore host factors can be interpreted as host genetic factors. The identification of host genetic factors which influence the outcome of HBV and HCV infection has recently been the subject of intense study, and high on the list of candidate genes which influence the course of these viral hepatitides are those within the major histocompatibility complex.
The major histocompatibility complex is a
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