Hepatitis B core related antigen in relation to intrahepatic and circulating viral markers, before and after combination therapy.
Ann Hepatol
; 26: 100540, 2021 12.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-34583061
INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Covalently closed circular (ccc)DNA acts as a viral reservoir in the liver of patients with a chronic hepatitis B (CHB) infection and can only be quantified in liver biopsies. Hepatitis B core-related antigen (HBcrAg) levels in plasma/serum have been proposed to reflect intrahepatic cccDNA-levels and may therefore monitor treatment efficacy. This study aimed to validate the relationship between HBcrAg and other intrahepatic and circulating viral markers in CHB patients with high viral load, before and after combination treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Plasma/serum levels of HBcrAg, HBsAg, HBV-DNA, and HBV pregenomic RNA (HBV-pgRNA), and intrahepatic cccDNA and HBV-DNA levels and fibrosis scores were measured in 89 CHB patients with HBV-DNA levels of >100,000 copies/mL (17,182 IU/mL). Measurements were done before and after a 48-week treatment with pegylated interferon alfa-2a and adefovir in a prospective study (ISRCTN77073364). RESULTS: Baseline HBcrAg-values correlated strongly with intrahepatic cccDNA (ρ 0.77, p < 0.001), intrahepatic HBV-DNA (ρ 0.73, p < 0.001) and plasma/serum HBV-DNA (ρ 0.80, p < 0.001), HBV-pgRNA (ρ 0.80, p < 0.001), and to lesser extend HBsAg (ρ 0.56, p < 0.001). Baseline HBcrAg-levels could not predict functional cure (FC) but HBcrAg-levels declined more strongly in patients who developed FC or HBeAg-loss. Furthermore, most correlations persisted at the end of treatment and follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: HBcrAg reflects cccDNA transcription activity more accurately than HBsAg and may replace HBV-DNA as a marker during future treatment regimens, especially when cccDNA transcription is targeted or nucleot(s)ide analogues are included in the treatment regime.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
DNA Viral
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Vírus da Hepatite B
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Hepatite B Crônica
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Antígenos do Núcleo do Vírus da Hepatite B
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Fígado
Tipo de estudo:
Observational_studies
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Prognostic_studies
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Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Adult
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Female
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Humans
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Male
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Ann Hepatol
Assunto da revista:
GASTROENTEROLOGIA
Ano de publicação:
2021
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de publicação:
México