Identification of different degrees of hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication by serological (HBV-DNAp, HBcAg and HBV-DNA) and histological (HBcAg) methods.
The incidence of HBV-DNA polymerase, HBV-DNA and serum and liver HBcAg in 104 chronic HBsAg carriers was studied. HBV-DNA was the most frequently detected marker, followed by HBcAg and HBV-DNAp. According to their individual or combined presence, four different serological patterns of viral replication were discerned: 53 patients had all these markers, 30 had HBV-DNA but lacked HBV-DNAp (15 with and 15 without HBcAg) and 21 had no such markers detectable. The simultaneous positivity for all of those markers was observed only in HBeAg-positive patients. HBV-DNA alone or along with HBcAg was found in a similar incidence irrespective of the HBe system. Liver HBcAg was found in all but four patients with and in four without HBV-DNA. Viral DNA concentration was significantly (p less than 0.001) higher when HBV-DNAp tested positive. Indeed, HBeAg rather than anti-HBe patients had higher (p less than 0.005) levels of HBV-DNA. In HBeAg-positive patients, the nuclear HBcAg staining was significantly (p less than 0.05) higher when HBV-DNAp tested positive. In DNA polymerase-negative patients, but positive for HBV-DNA, those with or without HBcAg had a similar percentage of core antigen staining. The same distribution was seen in anti-HBe, HBV-DNA-positive patients. However, the mean percentage of hepatocytes displaying cytoplasmic HBcAg did not differ significantly among patients with HBV-DNA, irrespective of the HBe system and the HBV-DNAp status. Such patients had significantly (p less than 0.001) higher ALT levels than those without viral DNA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
D000328:Adult; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D004259:DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens / Q000032:analysis*; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000382:microbiology; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014779:Virus Replication
D004279:DNA, Viral; D006512:Hepatitis B Core Antigens; D004259:DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase