Association of Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha (TNF-α) With Hepatitis C Virus Infection: A Case-Control Study

Authors

  • Laith A. I. K. Al-Kaif Department of Medical Microbiology, Hammurabi College of Medicine, University of Babylon, 51002, Hillah, Babylon, Iraq.
  • Osamah Rasheed Hameed University of Technology / Department of administrative and financial affairs, Baghdad, Iraq.
  • Massar Aamer Merza Department of Microbiology Hammurabi College of Medicine, university of babylon , Iraq.
  • Kazem Mehdi Kazem Department of Medical Microbiology, Hammurabi College of Medicine, University of Babylon, Hillah 51002, Iraq.

Keywords:

Hepatitis C Virus, Tnf- Α, ELISA, BMI

Abstract

Background: Although apparent antiviral medications have greatly increased the likelihood of eradication, hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is still a major host threat to liver infection and disease development because chronic contamination can result in persistent liver insufficiency, fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. One important perceived inflammatory cytokine implicated in innate adaptive immune responses and chronic HCV is tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α). The purpose of this study was to assess the possible status of TNF-α as a marker of the pro-inflammatory immune response linked to HCV infection and to compare serum TNF-α concentrations in patients with HCV infection with those of seemingly healthy controls.

Materials and Methods: A quantitative sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to assess blood TNF-α concentrations in a case-management study of 80 volunteers, comprising 40 patients with HCV infection and 40 trustworthy healthy controls. Anthropometric and demographic traits have also been evaluated.

Results: Compared to healthy controls, individuals with HCV had substantially higher serum TNF-α values. The HCV group's adjusted serum TNF-α consciousness was 59.14 ± 31.27 pg/mL, whereas the management populations was 18.15 ± 6,81 pg/mL. It was shown that differences between businesses were statistically significant (P < 0.001). In conclusion, a substantial increase in serum TNF-α was shown to be correlated with HCV infection. TNF-α may also have potential as an immune marker of HCV contamination inflammation because elevated TNF-α awareness may also reflect more desirable pro-inflammatory immune activation in HCV-infected subjects and contribute to the inflammatory environment associated with liver injury. However, large-scale studies involving viral load, liver biochemical index, fibrous phase.

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Published

2026-08-18