IFNA1 and infection: Acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in humans frequently progresses to chronicity,1 and virus persistence in the liver has been suggested to result, at least in part, from the ability of the virus to antagonize the interferon (IFN) system.2-5 Paradoxically, our ability to culture the virus for prolonged periods in differentiated primary hepatocytes in vitro has met with variable success.6-11