Hepatitis C virus in the body’s latent
A recent British study shows that hepatitis C virus is part of the human body in long-term potential because it can prevent the normal host cell death, one of the means is to turn off host cell “dead channel.”
Researchers at the University of Leeds in the new one the United States, “National Academy of Sciences,” reported that the body of unhealthy cells and aging cells, often after being referred to as “apoptosis” in the normal death process. In this process, the cell membrane to allow potassium ions out of the “death channel” is activated, the intracellular potassium concentration is reduced, thus triggering apoptosis.
The researchers found that hepatitis C virus can produce a protein called NS5A, use it to plug into host cells of this “death channel”, so that host cells survive. Hepatitis C virus and therefore can be long-term survival in the human body and may eventually lead to cirrhosis or liver cancer.
The researchers noted that some long-term latent in the body of viruses, including HIV, have the means to prevent apoptosis of host cells, but this study is the first discovery of the virus through the manipulation of the cell membrane ion channels to achieve this goal.
The researchers believe that through the joint use of induction of apoptosis and maintenance of ion channels in smooth flow of the two drugs can be used to treat HCV.