摘要
Objective:To investigate the relationship between variation of HBV preS genes and clinical consequencesof HBV infection. Methods: We selected 3 groups (3 in each) of HBV infected individuals including those of acuteinfection with complete recovery, chronic HBV carriers and chronic severe hepatitis B. The preS genes were amplified from serum samples with half nested PCR. The PCR products were cloned into M13 vectors and 10 cloneswere randomly selected for each individual and sequenced with standard methods. A total of 90 clones were sequenced and analyzed by DNA homological comparison. Results: The characteristics of the preS genes were significantly different in HBV-infected individuals with different clinical consequences.①As for acute hepatitis B, thepreS function domains were stable and no changes in epitopes for T and B cells were found. ②For chronic HBVcarriers, the function domains within preS proteins showed potentially changes with epitope drifts of T and B cellsbecause of the high variation of HBV preS genes. ③For chronic severe hepatitis B, there were special changes inthe function domains of B cells. The abnormally high immune response would cause severe liver injury in these individuals. Conclusion: This study provides experimental evidence for researches about the possible association ofvariation of preS1/S2 functional regions with clinical consequences.
Objective:To investigate the relationship between variation of HBV preS genes and clinical consequencesof HBV infection. Methods: We selected 3 groups (3 in each) of HBV infected individuals including those of acuteinfection with complete recovery, chronic HBV carriers and chronic severe hepatitis B. The preS genes were amplified from serum samples with half nested PCR. The PCR products were cloned into M13 vectors and 10 cloneswere randomly selected for each individual and sequenced with standard methods. A total of 90 clones were sequenced and analyzed by DNA homological comparison. Results: The characteristics of the preS genes were significantly different in HBV-infected individuals with different clinical consequences.①As for acute hepatitis B, thepreS function domains were stable and no changes in epitopes for T and B cells were found. ②For chronic HBVcarriers, the function domains within preS proteins showed potentially changes with epitope drifts of T and B cellsbecause of the high variation of HBV preS genes. ③For chronic severe hepatitis B, there were special changes inthe function domains of B cells. The abnormally high immune response would cause severe liver injury in these individuals. Conclusion: This study provides experimental evidence for researches about the possible association ofvariation of preS1/S2 functional regions with clinical consequences.
