Introduction: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection may have an etiopathogenic role in development of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). Antiapoptotic effect of the HCV may display via activation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappa B) transcription factor and can lead to development of carcinoma.
Aims: 1. Activated NF-kappa B was examined in peripheral blood lymphocytes of patients with HCV infection or NHL, and HCV positive B-cell NHL. 2. NF-kappa B was detected in liver biopsies of patients with HCV positive hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and in lymphnodes of patients with HCV positive NHL.
Patients and methods: 1. Fifteen patients with chronic HCV infection, 13 patients with B-cell NHL (among them 4 HCV positive) and 10 healthy subjects were examined for the activity of NF-kappa B using electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA). 2. Immunohistochemistry was performed in 8 liver biopsies from HCV positive patients and 2 HCC patients (1 HCV positive and 1 HCV negative) and 2 B-cell NHL patients (1 HCV positive and 1 HCV negative).
Results: 1. In the HCV negative control samples there was no shift detected, but we found NF-kappa B specific oligonucleotide-protein complexes in the lymphocyte extracts from all HCV positive patients and 10/13 (76.92%) in B-cell NHL. 2. NF-kappa B was detectable in 7/8 cases in liver biopsies from HCV positive patients. Strong reaction was detected in nuclei in HCV positive HCC and NHL patients (no reaction in HCV negative biopsies).
Conclusions: NF-kappa B activation was justified in both diseases, which can connect the development of both HCV infection and B-cell NHL. This factor activation may have role in hepato- and lymphomagenesis.