Influence of a genetic variant in the Duffy Antigen Receptor for Chemokines (DARC) on chronic liver diseases

Introduction: Since scavenger receptors for chemokines bind chemokines without conducting intracellular signals, they can influence chemokine levels and chemotactic signals. Monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (MCP-1) plays a critical role in monocyte recruitment and antiviral response, and binds to the scavenger receptor DARC. Recently, the DARC receptor variant Asp42Gly was identified to be associated with MCP-1 levels in healthy individuals (Schnabel et al. Blood 2009; epub). We now hypothesised that this DARC variant may be associated with susceptibility to chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and treatment…