The predictive value of IL28B gene polymorphism for spontaneous clearance in a single source outbreak cohort is limited in patients carrying the CCR5Δ32 mutation.

Background & Aims: The CCR5Δ32 mutation has been suspected to adversely affect outcomes of HCV infection, although reports have remained controversial. Here, we investigated the relative genetic contributions of the CCR5Δ32 deletion and the IL28B rs12979860 polymorphisms to spontaneous clearance of hepatitis C in a single-source outbreak.

Methods: We retrieved 396 Caucasian women (119 women with spontaneous HCV clearance) who had been infected with HCV genotype 1-contaminated anti-D immunoglobulin in 1978, and determined their IL28B and CCR5 alleles.

A polymorphism near IL28B is associated with spontaneous clearance of acute hepatitis C virus and jaundice.

Background & Aims: A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) upstream of the IL28B gene has been associated with response of patients with chronic hepatitis C to therapy with pegylated interferon and ribavirin and also with spontaneous clearance of acute hepatitis C in a heterogeneous population. We analyzed the association between IL28B and the clinical presentation of acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in a homogeneous population.

Methods: We analyzed the SNP rs12979860 in 190 women from the German anti-D cohort (infected with HCV genotype 1b via contaminated rhesus prophylaxis) and its association with spontaneous clearance.

[A 23-year-old patient with sore throat and cervical lymph node enlargement: a rare presentation of tularemia].

We report a case of oropharyngeal tularemia--an uncommon manifestation of this disease. There is a low prevalence of tularemia in Germany. Therefore the diagnosis can be confirmed only by well directed laboratory diagnostics.