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Published on: February 1, 2017
Response to interferon-alpha in chronic hepatitis B with and without precore mutant strain detected by mutation
Yasushi Seo1, Seitetsu Yoon, Kenichi Hamano
1Department of Clinical Molecular Medicine, Division of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, Kobe, Japan. yseo@med.kobe-u.ac.jp
Goals:
We investigated whether the presence of precore mutant (stop codon mutation at codon 28) affects the response to interferon-alpha in patients with chronic hepatitis B.
Background:
Mutations of hepatitis B virus (HBV) may influence the response to treatment. The association of precore mutant with the response to interferon is controversial.
Study:
Thirty-one Japanese patients with hepatitis B e antigen-positive chronic hepatitis were treated with natural interferon-alpha. HBV DNA with the precore mutation was assayed in serum using a mutation site-specific assay before and after treatment.
Results:
Before treatment, precore mutant was detected in 22 cases (group A) and not detected in 9 cases (group B). Serum HBV DNA level before treatment was not different between the 2 groups. At the end of treatment, serum HBV DNA was decreased to undetectable levels in 13% (4 of 31). Six months after treatment, the percentage of cases with loss of hepatitis B e antigen and a decrease in the transaminase level to within the normal range was significantly higher in group B than in group A (67%, 18%, P = 0.015).
Conclusions:
Chronic hepatitis without precore mutant strain before treatment is more responsive to IFN-alpha.
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