design: Total DNA was isolated from approximately 0.5 mm-long segments of 16-gauge needle liver biopsy samples using AllPrep DNA/RNA Micro Kit (Qiagen, #80284). A portion of total DNA prep was heat denatured and digested by plasmid-safe ATP-dependent DNase (PSAD), followed by cccDNA-specific qPCR quantification. PCR products from the PSAD-cccDNA PCR assay were purified by QIAquick PCR Purification Kit (Qiagen, #28106) and subjected to library preparation using xGen DNA Lib Prep MC UNI 96rxn (Integrated DNA Technologies, #10009820) with unique molecular identifiers (UMI).