title: Analysis of serum pre-S antigens in chronic hepatitis B virus infection in relation to the expression pattern of hepatitis B virus DNA in the liver.
abstract: Pre-S antigens have been analyzed in the serum of patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection according to the expression pattern of HBV DNA in the liver. Pre-S1 and pre-S2 have been identified (1) in all viremic cases with free replicative forms of viral DNA irrespective of the simultaneous detection of integrated sequences; (2) in 2 out of 3 patients with only integrated HBV DNA, and (3) in 19 patients who lacked viral DNA sequences detectable in the host genome. The amounts of hepatitis B surface and pre-S antigens were significantly higher in high-viremic versus low-viremic patients and correlated with the hepatocellular expression of HBV DNA. Conversely, the pre-S-to-hepatitis B surface antigen ratios were lower in the presence of viral DNA sequences in the liver. In summary, detection and level of pre-S antigens are closely related to the hepatocellular expression of viral DNA and seem to reflect reliably different stages of the virus life cycle during the course of HBV infection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology, Fundación Jiménez Díaz, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: del Mar Escudero
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Quiroga
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Bartolomé
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Carreño
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D015967:Gene Expression Regulation, Viral; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000382:microbiology*; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000097:blood*; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000382:microbiology*; D008297:Male; D011498:Protein Precursors / Q000097:blood*; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins / Q000097:blood*; D014766:Viremia / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D011498:Protein Precursors; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins; C050806:presurface protein 1, hepatitis B surface antigen; C050807:presurface protein 2, hepatitis B surface antigen