The effect of antiviral therapy on t(14;18) translocation and immunoglobulin gene rearrangement in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection

• Published in: Blood 2001-03, Vol.97 (6), p.1555-1559
• Main Authors: ZUCKERMAN, Eli, ZUCKERMAN, Tsila, SAHAR, Dvora, STREICHMAN, Sara, ATTIAS, Dina, SABO, Edmond, YESHURUN, Daniel, ROWE, Jacob M
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Antibiotics. Antiinfectious agents. Antiparasitic agents; Antiviral agents; Antiviral Agents - administration & dosage; Antiviral Agents - pharmacology; B-Lymphocytes - cytology; B-Lymphocytes - drug effects; Biological and medical sciences; Cell Division - drug effects; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 14; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 18; Drug Therapy, Combination; Female; Gene Rearrangement - drug effects; Genes, bcl-2 - drug effects; Hepatitis C, Chronic - complications; Hepatitis C, Chronic - drug therapy; Hepatitis C, Chronic - genetics; Human viral diseases; Humans; Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains - drug effects; Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains - genetics; Infectious diseases; Interferon-alpha - administration & dosage; Interferon-alpha - pharmacology; Lymphoma, B-Cell - etiology; Lymphoma, B-Cell - prevention & control; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Ribavirin - administration & dosage; Ribavirin - pharmacology; Translocation, Genetic - drug effects; Translocation, Genetic - genetics; Viral diseases; Viral hepatitis
• ISSN: 0006-4971; 1528-0020
• DOI: 10.1182/blood.V97.6.1555

The mechanism of lymphomagenesis of hepatitis C virus (HCV)-related B-cell lymphoma is unknown. Recently, it has been suggested that HCV may induce B-cell clonal proliferation and t(14;18) translocation in patients chronically infected with the virus. Thus, this study investigated the effect of antiviral treatment on immunoglobulin heavy-chain gene (IgH) rearrangement and t(14;18) translocation in HCV infected patients. Twenty-nine patients with chronic HCV infection were studied in whom IgH rearrangement and/or t(14;18) translocation were previously detected. The IgH rearrangement (FR3/JH) and t(14;18) translocation (MBR bcl2-JH) were detected in peripheral blood mononuclear cells by polymerase chain reaction. Fifteen of 29 patients (8 with IgH rearrangement, 6 with t(14;18) translocation, and 1 with both) were treated with either interferon-alpha or by combination therapy with interferon and ribavirin for 6 to 12 months. IgH rearrangement became negative in 7 of 9 treated patients compared with only 1 of 8 of nontreated patients (P