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Reactivation of chronic type B hepatitis: The effect on expression of serum HBV‐DNA and Pre‐S encoded proteins
Author(s) -
Hess Georg,
Gerken Guido,
Weber Christian,
Manns Michael,
Büschenfelde KarlHermann Meyer Zum
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
journal of medical virology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.782
H-Index - 121
eISSN - 1096-9071
pISSN - 0146-6615
DOI - 10.1002/jmv.1890250210
Subject(s) - hbeag , virology , hepatitis b virus , biology , hepatitis b , antigen , hepatitis b virus dna polymerase , hepatitis , liver disease , cytotoxic t cell , hepatitis b virus pre beta , virus , hepadnaviridae , nucleic acid , microbiology and biotechnology , immunology , hbsag , in vitro , biochemistry
Hepatitis B markers were studied in seven patients with reactivated liver disease. Reactivation of chronic type B hepatitis, as indicated by the reappearance of hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) in the serum, was characterised by the appearance of hepatitis B virus‐DNA (HBV‐DNA) in the serum. The expression of pre‐S 1 encoded protein remained unchanged in five of seven patients, and poly‐HSA as a marker for pre‐S 2 encoded protein remained detectable in six of seven patients before and after reactivation of chronic hepatitis. The level of serum HBV‐DNA correlated well with the level of liver enzymes, which rose from normal to various levels after reactivation of the liver disease. The data suggest that inflammatory activity of the liver disease is not related to the expression of pre‐S encoded protein but to viral replication. Possibly pre‐C and C‐gene encoded antigens, which are produced together with viral nucleic acid and expressed on the surface of HBV‐infected liver cells, play the key role in liver damage believed to be mediated by cytotoxic T cells.