<i>MERTK</i> rs4374383 A carriers had a lower risk of liver fibrosis progression than G carriers, supporting the hypothesis that this SNP seems to have a critical role in the pathogenesis of liver disease in HCV-infected patients.
In the combined cohort of 2342 HCV-infected patients, the SNPs rs16851720 (in the total sample) and rs4374383 (in patients who received blood transfusions) were associated with fibrosis progression (P(combined) = 8.9 × 10(-9) and 1.1 × 10(-9), respectively).
Treatment of hepatitis C with interferon-α results in increased IRF1 levels and our data suggest that this leads to an allele-specific downregulation of MERTK mediated by an allelic effect on the regulatory element containing the functional rs6726639.