Analysis of differential gene expression between chronic hepatitis B patients and asymptomatic hepatitis B carriers.
OBJECTIVE
Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection remains a serious global health problem, inducing a spectrum of diseases, including asymptomatic HBV carriage (ASC) and chronic hepatitis B (CHB). ASC and CHB represent different immunological states and their prognoses are diverse. To clarify molecular mechanisms underlying the two infection states, the differentially expressed genes between the two states were screened and identified.


METHODS
Subtracted complementary DNA libraries by suppression subtractive hybridization, dot blot hybridization and quantitative real-time PCR were used to identify the differentially expressed genes between subjects with CHB and those with ASC.


RESULTS
RNA from peripheral blood mononuclear cells from CHB and ASC subjects was subjected to suppression subtractive hybridization and resulted in isolation of subtracted complementary DNA clones. Eighty-eight randomly sampled clones were rescreened by dot blot hybridization, from which 29 clones were identified as differentially expressed genes. The differential expression of three genes was confirmed by real-time PCR in 23 subjects with CHB and 21 with ASC.


CONCLUSIONS
Differentially expressed genes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells between CHB and ASC have been isolated by suppression subtractive hybridization, including some new genes. Of the up-regulated genes in CHB, most are known to be responsive to inflammatory conditions. These genes might provide clues in elucidating the mechanisms of the two different HBV infection states and designing therapeutic targets for HBV infection.
Tang
Cuilan
C
Key Laboratory of Health Ministry, Institute of Infectious Diseases, First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Zhejiang, China.
Chen
Zhi
Z
Peng
Guoping
G
Yang
Zhenggang
Z
Zhou
Linfu
L
D000328:Adult; D002353:Carrier State; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling / Q000379:methods*; D015723:Gene Library; D005814:Genes, Viral; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000235:genetics*; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male