Epigenetic scars in regulatory T cells are retained after successful treatment of chronic hepatitis C with direct-acting antivirals [ATAC-Seq]

During chronic HCV infection, several immune components are altered both quantitatively and qualitatively. The recent introduction of DAAs led to a high cure rate of chronic HCV infection. Nevertheless, we have demonstrated that inflammatory features of TREG cells are maintained at phenotypic, transcriptomic, and epigenetic levels even after successful DAA treatment. Bulk ATAC sequencing using isolated human peripheral blood TREG cell population (CD4+ CD25+ CD127-) TREG cell was isolated from patients with chronic HCV infection before DAA treatment, at SVR, and from long-term follow-up (2.3 years to 6.3 years since SVR12, mean = 2.9 years)