title: Significance of pretreatment analysis of hepatitis C virus genotype 1b hypervariable region 1 sequences to predict antiviral outcome.
abstract: The heterogeneity of hypervariable region 1 (HVR1), located at the amino terminus of the E2 envelope, may be involved in resistance to alpha interferon (IFN-alpha) treatment. We investigated whether peculiar HVR1 domain profiles before treatment were associated with the maintenance of sensitivity or the appearance of resistance to treatment. Fifteen patients infected with hepatitis C virus genotype 1b and treated with IFN with or without ribavirin were selected. Ten responded to treatment (groups R1 and R2) and five did not (group NR). The amino acid sequences of 150 naturally occurring HVR1 variants present in the serum before therapy were compared in relation to treatment outcome. HVR1 variants from the NR group contained a constant nonantigenic amino acid segment that was not found in HVR1 variants from the R groups.
authors.affiliation: Département de Microbiologie Médicale et Moléculaire EA 3250, Université François Rabelais, F37044 Tours Cedex, France.
authors.forename: Catherine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gaudy
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moreau
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Veillon
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Temoin
authors.forename: Francoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lunel
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Goudeau
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D000956:Antigens, Viral / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001483:Base Sequence; D022801:Complementarity Determining Regions; D017931:DNA Primers; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005838:Genotype; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D011487:Protein Conformation; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D019914:Taq Polymerase; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000956:Antigens, Viral; D000998:Antiviral Agents; D022801:Complementarity Determining Regions; D017931:DNA Primers; D019914:Taq Polymerase