CLDN1 and hepatocellular carcinoma: Considering that logistic regression analysis confirmed the predictive power of Cldn1 and TGF-β mRNA expression in PBMCs from HCC patients, in addition to the reported associations of high serum and/or hepatic expression of sCD163 and IL-10 with poor HCC prognosis [26, 42, 53], the implication of the transcriptional signatures of both genes in hepatocarcinogenesis seems plausible.