**Meet the editor**

Dr. Imran Shahid is an assistant professor at Umm-Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia, where his research is focused on the broad areas of host–virus networks in hepatitis C virus (HCV) disease progression, as well as host–virus interaction during hepatic fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. He is also enthusiastically involved in studies of HCV infection biology,

cell signaling pathways, and genome heterogeneity in the Saudi population. He was trained at the Applied and Functional Genomics Laboratory, National Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan, where he worked on anti-mRNA-based treatment strategies against hepatitis C in the Pakistani population. Dr. Imran has published many research articles in peer-reviewed international journals and is a member of the editorial boards of several international journals.

Contents

**Preface VII**

Imran Shahid

Chapter 1 **Introductory Chapter: Current and Emerging Anti-Hepatitis C**

Binod Kumar, Akshaya Ramachandran and Gulam Waris

Chapter 4 **The Molecular Background Associated with the Progression of Hepatitis C to Hepatocellular Carcinoma 67**

Chapter 5 **Micro-RNA in Hepatocellular Carcinoma - Related Hepatitis C Virus Patients in Correlation to Disease Progression 87**

Chapter 6 **Metabolic Factors and Their Influence on the Clinical Course**

Livia M Villar, Cristiane A Villela-Nogueira, Allan P da Silva and

**Section 3 Hepatitis C and Associated Clinical Implications 103**

**and Response to HCV Treatment 105**

Abdel-Rahman N. Zekri, Abeer A. Bahnassy and Mona S. Abdellateif

Chapter 3 **HCV Lymphotropism and Its Pathogenic Significance 45**

**Regimens: Hope or Hype 3**

**Section 2 Hepatitis C Virus Infection Progression 17**

Chapter 2 **Hepatitis C Virus and Inflammation 19**

Tomasz I. Michalak

Moustafa Nouh Elemeery

Letícia P Scalioni

**Section 1 Introduction 1**

## Contents



Chapter 7 **Periodontal Implications of Hepatitis C Infection 119** Petra Surlin, Dorin Nicolae Gheorghe, Liliana Foia, Amelia Surdu, Vasilica Toma, Sorina Mihaela Solomon, Dan Nicolae Florescu and Ion Rogoveanu

Chapter 8 **Hepatitis C: Host and Viral Factors Associated with Response to Therapy and Progression of Liver Fibrosis 139** Snezana Jovanovic-Cupic, Ana Bozovic, Milena Krajnovic and Nina Petrovic

Preface

cialists, and general readers.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and associated hepatic comorbidities are still challenging, and disease burden remains significant around the world. Over the last decade, we have seen little curtailment in hepatitis C-related sequelae where the advent of direct-acting anti‐ virals (DAAs) has clearly brought good news, as it may be possible to achieve a sustained virologic response—"a virologic cure"— in the majority of patients with chronic HCV infec‐ tion. Clinicians are now seeing outcomes they never thought possible, and experts are opti‐ mistic that more complex and challenging patients will respond to therapy. All this has amalgamated efforts to purge the viral scourges, to cure the infection, and in parallel to ac‐

*Hepatitis C—From Infection to Cure* is divided into four sections. The first section is the intro‐ duction, while second section sheds light on the propagation of HCV infection, molecular mechansims, and cell signaling cascades involved in the propagation of the disease. This section also presents HCV lymphotropism and its pathogenic relevance. The third section consists of chapters related to hepatitis C-associated clinical implications, especially perio‐ dontal implications and metabolic factors influencing the clinical course of hepatitis C and response to HCV treatment. The forth section overviews the current and emerging anti-hep‐ atitis C regimens considering safety, tolerability, and associated side effects related to DAAs. This informative book provides clinicians, physicians, healthcare providers, researchers, medical residents, and students with up-to-date, credible, and unbiased information/guid‐ ance for the treatment of hepatitis C, as well as knowledge of the latest developments and emergence of new treatment strategies to help stem infection. I am extremely grateful to all the contributors from different parts of the world who are excellent researchers, renowned clinicians/physicians, and emerging scholars in the field of hepatitis C virology, pathology, and therapeutics. I hope that their novel ideas and excellent scientific findings present a broad spectrum of academic and community-based knowledge of hepatitis C disease pro‐ gression, associated clinical implications, and therapeutics to healthcare providers, nonspe‐

A journey is easier when you travel together and interdependence is certainly more valuable than independence. During this work I have been accompanied and supported by my col‐ leagues at the College of Pharmacy, Umm- Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia and I

Finally, I dedicate this book to my father, Mr. Muhammad Hafeez , who is always with me at every step of my life, and all that I am or hope to be I owe to him, and my mother Tasneem

am grateful for the opportunity to express my gratitude to all of them.

complish the potential global goal of HCV eradication over the next few years.

**Section 4 Hepatitis C Treatment Strategies 161**

Lankford and Hien Tran

