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Jiang ZH, Chen QY, Jia HH, Wang XY, Zhang LJ, Huang XQ, Harrison TJ, Jackson JB, Wu L, Fang ZL. Low host immune pressure may be associated with the development of hepatocellular carcinoma: a longitudinal analysis of complete genomes of the HBV 1762T, 1764A mutant. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1214423. [PMID: 37681020 PMCID: PMC10481955 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1214423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2023] [Accepted: 08/04/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Background It has been reported that hepatitis B virus (HBV) double mutations (A1762T, G1764A) are an aetiological factor of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, it is unclear who is prone to develop HCC, among those infected with the mutant. Exploring HBV quasispecies, which are strongly influenced by host immune pressure, may provide more information about the association of viral factors and HCC. Materials and methods Nine HCC cases and 10 controls were selected from the Long An cohort. Serum samples were collected in 2004 and 2019 from subjects with HBV double mutations and the complete genome of HBV was amplified and sequenced using next-generation sequencing (NGS). Results The Shannon entropy values increased from 2004 to 2019 in most cases and controls. There was no significant difference in mean intrahost quasispecies genetic distances between cases and controls. The change in the values of mean intrahost quasispecies genetic distances of the controls between 2004 and 2019 was significantly higher than that of the cases (P<0.05). The viral loads did not differ significantly between cases and controls in 2004(p=0.086) but differed at diagnosed in 2019 (p=0.009). Three mutations occurring with increasing frequency from 2004 to 2019 were identified in the HCC cases, including nt446 C→G, nt514 A→C and nt2857T→C. Their frequency differed significantly between the cases and controls (P<0.05). Conclusions The change in the values of mean intrahost quasispecies genetic distances in HCC was smaller, suggesting that HBV in HCC cases may be subject to low host immune pressure. Increasing viral loads during long-term infection are associated with the development of HCC. The novel mutations may increase the risk for HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhi-Hua Jiang
- Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Guangxi Key Laboratory for the Prevention and Control of Viral Hepatitis, Nanning, Guangxi, China
| | - Qin-Yan Chen
- Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Guangxi Key Laboratory for the Prevention and Control of Viral Hepatitis, Nanning, Guangxi, China
| | - Hui-Hua Jia
- Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Guangxi Key Laboratory for the Prevention and Control of Viral Hepatitis, Nanning, Guangxi, China
- School of Preclinical Medicine, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, China
| | - Xue-Yan Wang
- Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Guangxi Key Laboratory for the Prevention and Control of Viral Hepatitis, Nanning, Guangxi, China
| | - Lu-Juan Zhang
- Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Guangxi Key Laboratory for the Prevention and Control of Viral Hepatitis, Nanning, Guangxi, China
| | - Xiao-Qian Huang
- Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Guangxi Key Laboratory for the Prevention and Control of Viral Hepatitis, Nanning, Guangxi, China
- School of Preclinical Medicine, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, China
| | - Tim J. Harrison
- Division of Medicine, University College London Medical School, London, United Kingdom
| | - J. Brooks Jackson
- Department of Pathology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, United States
| | - Li Wu
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, United States
| | - Zhong-Liao Fang
- Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Guangxi Key Laboratory for the Prevention and Control of Viral Hepatitis, Nanning, Guangxi, China
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Molecular Evolution and Phylodynamics of Acute Hepatitis B Virus in Japan. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0157103. [PMID: 27280441 PMCID: PMC4900519 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0157103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2016] [Accepted: 05/24/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is prevalent worldwide and causes liver diseases, including acute and chronic hepatitis. Ten HBV genotypes (A–J) with distinct geographic distributions have been reported. Cases of acute HBV infection with genotype A have increased in Japan nationwide since the 1990s, mainly through sexual transmission. To investigate the molecular evolution and phylodynamics of HBV genotypes, we collected acute HBV isolates acquired in Japan from 1992–2002. Full genomes were obtained for comprehensive phylogenetic and phylodynamic analysis, with other Japanese HBV sequences from GenBank that were isolated during 1991–2010. HBV genotypes were classified using the maximum-likelihood and Bayesian methods. The GMRF Bayesian Skyride was used to estimate the evolution and population dynamics of HBV. Four HBV genotypes (A, B, C, and H) were identified, of which C was the major genotype. The phylodynamic results indicated an exponential growth between the 1960s and early 1990s; this was followed by a population bottleneck after 1995, possibly linked with successful implementation of a nationwide vaccination program. However, HBV/A increased from 1990 to 2003–2004, and then started to decrease. The prevalence of genotype A has increased over the past 10 years. Phylodynamic inference clearly demonstrates a steady population growth compatible with an ongoing subepidemic; this might be due to the loss of immunity to HBV in adolescents and people being born before the vaccination program. This is the first phylodynamic study of HBV infection in Japan and will facilitate understanding the molecular epidemiology and long-term evolutionary dynamics of this virus in Japan.
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Mondal RK, Khatun M, Ghosh S, Banerjee P, Datta S, Sarkar S, Saha B, Santra A, Banerjee S, Chowdhury A, Datta S. Immune-driven adaptation of hepatitis B virus genotype D involves preferential alteration in B-cell epitopes and replicative attenuation--an insight from human immunodeficiency virus/hepatitis B virus coinfection. Clin Microbiol Infect 2015; 21:710.e11-20. [PMID: 25882358 DOI: 10.1016/j.cmi.2015.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2014] [Revised: 02/25/2015] [Accepted: 03/13/2015] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
An important driving force behind the sequence diversity of hepatitis B virus (HBV) is viral adaptation to host immune responses. To gain an insight into the impact of host immunity on genetic diversification and properties of HBV, we characterized HBV of genotype D from treatment-naive hepatitis B e antigen-positive (EP) and hepatitis B e antigen-negative (EN) patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), where HBV is under stronger immune pressure, with that of HBV derived from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/HBV-coinfected individuals, where HIV infection has significantly weakened the immune system. Full-length sequence analysis showed that HBV heterogeneity was most extensive in EN-CHB followed by EP-CHB and HIV/HBV coinfection. The relative magnitude of non-synonymous changes within B-cell epitopes was greater than that in T-cell epitopes of HBV open reading frames (ORFs) in both EP-CHB and EN-CHB. Nine amino acid substitutions were identified in B-cell epitopes and one in a T-cell epitope of HBV in EN-CHB, most of which resulted in altered hydrophobicities, as determined using the Kyte and Doolittle method, relative to wild-type residues found in HBV from the HIV-positive group. Additionally, 19 substitutions occurred at significantly higher frequencies in non-epitope regions of HBV ORF-P in EN-CHB than HIV/HBV-coinfected patients. In vitro replication assay demonstrated that the substitutions, particularly in reverse transcriptase and RNaseH domains of ORF-P, resulted in a decline in replication capacity of HBV. Hence, our results indicate that HBV adapts to increasing immune pressure through preferential mutations in B-cell epitopes and by replicative attenuation. The viral epitopes linked to immune response identified in this study bear important implications for future HBV vaccine studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- R K Mondal
- Centre for Liver Research, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India
| | - M Khatun
- Centre for Liver Research, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India
| | - S Ghosh
- Centre for Liver Research, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India
| | - P Banerjee
- Centre for Liver Research, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India
| | - S Datta
- Centre for Liver Research, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India
| | - S Sarkar
- Centre for Liver Research, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India
| | - B Saha
- Department of Tropical Medicine, Calcutta School of Tropical Medicine, Kolkata, India
| | - A Santra
- Centre for Liver Research, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India
| | - S Banerjee
- Centre for Liver Research, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India
| | - A Chowdhury
- Department of Hepatology, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India
| | - S Datta
- Centre for Liver Research, School of Digestive and Liver Diseases, Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, Kolkata, India.
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Torres C, Fernández MDB, Flichman DM, Campos RH, Mbayed VA. Influence of overlapping genes on the evolution of human hepatitis B virus. Virology 2013; 441:40-8. [PMID: 23541083 DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2013.02.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2013] [Revised: 02/05/2013] [Accepted: 02/28/2013] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
The aim of this work was to analyse the influence of overlapping genes on the evolution of hepatitis B virus (HBV). A differential evolutionary behaviour among genetic regions and clinical status was found. Dissimilar levels of conservation of the different protein regions could derive from alternative mechanisms to maintain functionality. We propose that, in overlapping regions, selective constraints on one of the genes could drive the substitution process. This would allow protein conservation in one gene by synonymous substitutions while mechanisms of tolerance to the change operate in the overlapping gene (e.g. usage of amino acids with high-degeneracy codons, differential codon usage and replacement by physicochemically similar amino acids). In addition, differential selection pressure according to the HBeAg status was found in all genes, suggesting that the immune response could be one of the factors that would constrain viral replication by interacting with different HBV proteins during the HBeAg(-) stage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolina Torres
- Cátedra de Virología, Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina; CONICET, Argentina
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Abbott WGH, Tsai P, Ross HA, 'Ofanoa M, Trevarton AJ, Hornell J, Munn SR, Gane EJ. Selection pressure on the hepatitis B virus pre-S/S and P open reading frames in Tongan subjects with a chronic hepatitis B virus infection. Antiviral Res 2012; 96:148-57. [PMID: 22960602 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2012.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2012] [Revised: 08/20/2012] [Accepted: 08/23/2012] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Identification of the full repertoire of hepatitis B virus (HBV) peptides that are presented to CD8+ T cells by common HLA class I alleles will be useful for designing immunotherapies for chronic hepatitis B. One hundred and seventy five cloned sequences containing the pre-S/S and P open reading frames (ORF) of the HBV were obtained from serum HBV-DNA of HBeAg-positive (n=4) and HBeAg-negative (inactive healthy carriers (IHC), n=16) Tongan subjects with an inactive chronic HBV infection. In addition, 34 and 32 sequences were obtained 5.2±1.4 (mean±SD) years apart from eight subjects. PAML was used to identify codons in the pre-S/S and P ORFs that were under positive selection pressure (ω>1). The number of non-synonymous substitutions in these codons was compared in IHC who were homozygous for either HLA-B∗4001 (n=9) or HLA-B*5602 (n=7), and who were either positive (n=6) or negative (n=10) for HLA-A*02. 34 codons in the pre-S/S and 11 codons in the P ORFs were under positive selection pressure. There was a higher number of non-synonymous substitutions in these codons in HBeAg-negative versus HBeAg-positive subjects in the P (p=0.02) but not the pre-S/S (p=0.64) ORF. There was no association between any HLA class I allele and non-synonymous substitutions in these codons. There was no increase in positive selection pressure on the pre-S/S and P ORFs with time. In conclusion, we could not find HLA class I-restricted selection pressure on any pre-S/S or P ORF amino acid; raising the possibility that peptide-based immunotherapies for chronic hepatitis B may not require peptides from these ORFs.
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Affiliation(s)
- William G H Abbott
- The New Zealand Liver Transplant Unit, Auckland City Hospital, Private Bag 92-024, Auckland, New Zealand.
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