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Genetic heterogeneity in the precore region of hepatitis B virus in hepatitis B e antigen‐negative chronic hepatitis B Patients: Spontaneous seroconversion and interferon‐induced seroconversion
Author(s) -
Karasawa Tatsunobu,
Aizawa Yoshio,
Zeniya Mikio,
Kuramoto Akira,
Toda Gotaro,
Shirasawa Takuji
Publication year - 1995
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.1890450404
Subject(s) - virology , hbeag , seroconversion , hepatitis b virus , asymptomatic carrier , medicine , hepadnaviridae , virus , hepatitis b , interferon , orthohepadnavirus , liver disease , immunology , viral disease , hepatitis , asymptomatic , hbsag
To elucidate the relationship between the clinical severity of chronic liver disease and the precore mutations in hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)‐nega‐tive hepatitis B virus (HBV) carriers, mutations were investigated in the precore region of HBV DNA in 20 chronic hepatitis B patients who sero‐converted either spontaneously or after the administration of α‐interferon (IFN), and 5 asymptomatic carriers. The precore mutation with a stop codon at nucleotide 1896 was found in all patients, irrespective of the histology and in all asymptomatic carriers. The second mutation at nucleotide 1899 was found in 40% of cases studied but always followed by the first mutation at nucleotide 1896. The mixed viral infection of precore mutant and wild‐type HBV virus was found in 40% of seroconverted cases after IFN treatment and in sera of HBV carriers obtained within a year after the spontaneous Seroconversion. These data suggest that the precore mutants prevail over wild‐type HBV in all HBeAg‐negative HBV carriers within several years after the sero‐conversion, but their prevalence could not confine the clinical severity of chronic liver disease. © 1995 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.