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Background Hepatitis C virus infection is a global health challenge with Egypt being one of the highly affected countries. IL-10 has been suggested as a suitable marker to assess necroinflammation and to monitor the progression of liver damage. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a potent angiogenic factor playing a central role in many physiological as well as pathological processes. Several factors can be predictive of the response to treatment and achievement of SVR; some of which are host-related, and others are virus-related. The gene expression of IL-10 and VEGF have multiple effects for treatment response. The aim of the present work was to study the effect of treatment with directly acting agents (DAA) on the expression of VEGF and IL-10 genes in chronic hepatitis C virus-infected Egyptian genotype-4a patients. Twenty-five HCV subjects where evaluated for IL-10 and VEGF gene expression before and after treatment with DAA. Results IL-10 expression was downregulated in 92% of the cases. VEGF expression was heterogeneous showing spreading of values along a wide range with 64% of the cases being downregulated. Conclusion DAAs do not completely reverse the immunological imprints established upon chronic HCV infection.

Background. The incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has increased over the past years and early identification and management of its complications especially diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is of great importance. T2DM and DKD are of multifactorial etio logy with contribution of genetic and environmental factors. We aimed to study the expression of ABCC8 and Notch 2 genes in patients with T2DM and to find their association with DKD. Methods. The present work was carried on 80 patients with T2DM (40 with DKD and 40 without DKD) and 40 healthy subjects as a control group. Real time polymerase chain reaction was used to assess gene expression. Results. Altered expression of ABCC8 and Notch 2 genes were found in patients with T2DM compared to control group. ABCC8 expression had significant positive correlation with HbA 1c while Notch 2 expres sion had significant positive correlation with fasting plasma glucose and HbA 1c. Notch 2 expression was significantly higher in patients with DKD compared to those without DKD. Multivariate regression analysis showed that Notch 2 expression had independent relation with increased urinary albumin excretion and reduced estimated glomerular filtration rate. ABCC8 gene expression did not show significant difference between diabetic patients with DKD compared to those without DKD. Conclusion. Increased expression of ABCC8 and Notch 2 genes may play a role in pathogenesis of T2DM. Overexpression of Notch 2 gene may have a role in the development of albuminuria and DKD in patients with T2DM which may represent a possible diagnostic tool and a possible therapeutic target.