Premium
Precore wild‐type DNA and immune complexes persist in chronic hepatitis B after seroconversion: No association between genome conversion and seroconversion
Author(s) -
Maruyama Toshiyuki,
Kuwata Shoji,
Koike Kazuhiko,
Iino Shiro,
Yasuda Kiyomi,
Yotsuyanagi Hiroshi,
Moriya Kyoji,
Maekawa Hisato,
Yamada Haruki,
Shibata Yoichi,
Milich David R.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
hepatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.488
H-Index - 361
eISSN - 1527-3350
pISSN - 0270-9139
DOI - 10.1002/hep.510270137
Subject(s) - hbeag , seroconversion , hepatitis b virus , virology , hepatitis b , hepadnaviridae , orthohepadnavirus , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , medicine , virus , hbsag
Precore hepatitis B virus (HBV) mutants may gradually prevail during or after seroconversion (SC) from hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) to hepatitis B e antigen antibody (anti‐HBe) status in many chronic hepatitis B (CH‐B) patients. However, patients with CH‐B still produce anti‐HBe more than several years after SC, and the relationship between SC and genome conversion in the precore region has not been clarified. Therefore, in patients with CH‐B who had a sustained loss of HBeAg and complete remission of hepatitis after SC, the precore region was sequenced in paired serum samples from 1 year before SC to 3 years after SC. Mutant precore defective HBV DNA was found in only 6 (19%) of 31 CH‐B patients who had a complete remission of hepatitis after SC. Mixed‐type HBV DNA (precore wild‐type and mutant‐type) was found in 4 (13%) patients. Wild‐type HBV DNA was found in 21 (68%) CH‐B patients after SC. Longer‐term follow‐up of 11 CH‐B patients indicated that 3 of 11 patients experienced precore genome conversion 2 to 3 years after SC. E‐plus DNA or e‐minus DNA was semiquantitated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) assays before and after SC. E‐plus DNA levels decreased from 10 5.56±1.58 to 10 2.45±1.61 . Similarly, e‐minus DNA levels declined from 10 4.25±1.56 to 10 1.86±1.37 . By dot‐blot assay, serum HBV DNA became negative soon after SC, as did serum HBeAg. In contrast, HBeAg‐containing immune complexes were still detected after SC. Anti‐HBe antibody was produced throughout SC and thereafter, as determined by a sensitive experimental assay. Therefore, we conclude that genome‐conversion in the precore region is a separate event from HBeAg/anti‐HBe seroconversion.