Characteristics of HCV replication and expression in a cultured human liver carcinoma cell line in vitro

Objective: To establish a cell culture system to support HCV long-term replication in vitro. Methods: A human hepatoma cell line 7721 was tested for its susceptibility to HCV by incubating with a serum from chronic hepatitis C patient. Cells and supernatant of the culture medium were harvested at various time-phases during the culturing periods. The presence of HCV RNA, the expression of HCV antigens in cells and/or supematant were examined with RT-PCR, in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry respectively. Results: It was found that the intracellular HCV RNA was first detected on the 2nd day after culture, and then could be intermittently detected in both cells and supernatant over a period of at least 3 months after culture. HCV NS3, CP10 antigens were expressed in the cells. The fresh cells could be infected with the supernatant from cultured infected cells and the transmission of viral genome from HCV-infected 7721 cells to peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was also observed. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that the human liver carcinoma cell line7721 is not only susceptible to HCV but also can support its long replication in vitro. This cell line with HCV infection in vitro can serve as a useful tool for the study of the mechanism of HCV infection and replication, the evaluation of antiviral agents, and the primary selection of neutralization assays and HCV vaccine development.