Yafteh

Background : Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is considered as one of the major pathogenic agents of chronic liver diseases. Previous studies have shown that HCV proteins can interaction with gene regulatory networks such as microRNAs. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of HCV core protein on the expression of miR-150 in a cell culture model.

Materials and Methods: Plasmids expressing full HCV core protein was transfected into Huh7 cell lines while a GFP expressing plasmid employed as negative control. Subsequently, total RNA extracted and Real-Time PCR performed to measure the expression level of miR-150 expression. Moreover, trypan blue exclusion assay was performed to investigate the effect of core protein on cell viability.

Results: The gene expression analysis of miR-150 in Huh7 cells showed that endogenous HCV core protein could significantly down regulation of miR-150 when compared to GFP control plasmid and normal cells (P<0.01). Beside, core protein induced no significant proliferative or cytotoxic effects on hepatic cells as determined by trypan blue exclusion assay (P<0.05).

Conclusion: Our study suggests that HCV core protein can led to down regulation of miR-150 expression. This data revealed that HCV protein interactions with cell regulatory machinery may contribute to pathogenesis of chronic liver diseases.