Modeling hepatitis C virus infection using human induced pluripotent stem cells

Human pathogens impact patient health through a complex interplay with the host, but models to study the role of host genetics in this process are limited. Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) offer the ability to produce host-specific differentiated cells and thus have the potential to transform the study of infectious disease; however, no iPSC models of infectious disease have been described. Here we report that hepatocyte-like cells derived from iPSCs support the entire life cycle of hepatitis C virus, including inflammatory responses to infection, enabling studies of how host genetics impact viral pathogenesis.