WS4 - Immune Phenotyping

Work Strand 4 focuses on stratification through characterisation of host immune responses

There is extensive evidence that the outcome of HCV infection is dependent on host innate and adaptive immune responses. Analyses of innate activation at the level of both gene expression and protein production can already provide important information predictive of treatment outcome with both current and DAA- based regimens.

There is a strong rationale for further defining the role of innate and adaptive immunity, relevant not only directly to patient stratification but also to the underpinning mechanisms of host control. This is particularly relevant to genotype-3, since most studies to date have focused on genotype-1 infection.

The objective of this Work Strand is to undertake studies to link host immune responsiveness to clinical outcomes.

This Work Strand is led by Professor Paul Klenerman (University of Oxford).