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Kornyeyev D, Song Z, Eng S, Soulette C, Ramirez R, Tang J, Yue Q, Subramanian R, Zaboli S, Moon C, Tam J, Brodbeck J, Aggarwal A, Diehl L, Fletcher SP, Hyrina A, Holdorf MM, Burdette D. Selective depletion of HBV-infected hepatocytes by class A capsid assembly modulators requires high levels of intrahepatic HBV core protein. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 2024; 68:e0042024. [PMID: 38780261 PMCID: PMC11232385 DOI: 10.1128/aac.00420-24] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2024] [Accepted: 05/02/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Capsid assembly mediated by hepatitis B virus (HBV) core protein (HBc) is an essential part of the HBV replication cycle, which is the target for different classes of capsid assembly modulators (CAMs). While both CAM-A ("aberrant") and CAM-E ("empty") disrupt nucleocapsid assembly and reduce extracellular HBV DNA, CAM-As can also reduce extracellular HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) by triggering apoptosis of HBV-infected cells in preclinical mouse models. However, there have not been substantial HBsAg declines in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients treated with CAM-As to date. To investigate this disconnect, we characterized the antiviral activity of tool CAM compounds in HBV-infected primary human hepatocytes (PHHs), as well as in HBV-infected human liver chimeric mice and mice transduced with adeno-associated virus-HBV. Mechanistic studies in HBV-infected PHH revealed that CAM-A, but not CAM-E, induced a dose-dependent aggregation of HBc in the nucleus which is negatively regulated by the ubiquitin-binding protein p62. We confirmed that CAM-A, but not CAM-E, induced HBc-positive cell death in both mouse models via induction of apoptotic and inflammatory pathways and demonstrated that the degree of HBV-positive cell loss was positively correlated with intrahepatic HBc levels. Importantly, we determined that there is a significantly lower level of HBc per hepatocyte in CHB patient liver biopsies than in either of the HBV mouse models. Taken together, these data confirm that CAM-As have a unique secondary mechanism with the potential to kill HBc-positive hepatocytes. However, this secondary mechanism appears to require higher intrahepatic HBc levels than is typically observed in CHB patients, thereby limiting the therapeutic potential.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Zhijuan Song
- Gilead Sciences, Inc., Foster City, California, USA
| | - Stacey Eng
- Gilead Sciences, Inc., Foster City, California, USA
| | | | | | | | - Qin Yue
- Gilead Sciences, Inc., Foster City, California, USA
| | | | - Shiva Zaboli
- Gilead Sciences, Inc., Foster City, California, USA
| | | | - Jane Tam
- Gilead Sciences, Inc., Foster City, California, USA
| | | | | | - Lauri Diehl
- Gilead Sciences, Inc., Foster City, California, USA
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2
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Zai W, Yang M, Jiang K, Guan J, Wang H, Hu K, Huang C, Chen J, Fu W, Zhan C, Yuan Z. Optimized RNA interference therapeutics combined with interleukin-2 mRNA for treating hepatitis B virus infection. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2024; 9:150. [PMID: 38902241 PMCID: PMC11189933 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-024-01871-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2023] [Revised: 05/06/2024] [Accepted: 05/14/2024] [Indexed: 06/22/2024] Open
Abstract
This study aimed to develop a pan-genotypic and multifunctional small interfering RNA (siRNA) against hepatitis B virus (HBV) with an efficient delivery system for treating chronic hepatitis B (CHB), and explore combined RNA interference (RNAi) and immune modulatory modalities for better viral control. Twenty synthetic siRNAs targeting consensus motifs distributed across the whole HBV genome were designed and evaluated. The lipid nanoparticle (LNP) formulation was optimized by adopting HO-PEG2000-DMG lipid and modifying the molar ratio of traditional polyethylene glycol (PEG) lipid in LNP prescriptions. The efficacy and safety of this formulation in delivering siHBV (tLNP/siHBV) along with the mouse IL-2 (mIL-2) mRNA (tLNP/siHBVIL2) were evaluated in the rAAV-HBV1.3 mouse model. A siRNA combination (terms "siHBV") with a genotypic coverage of 98.55% was selected, chemically modified, and encapsulated within an optimized LNP (tLNP) of high efficacy and security to fabricate a therapeutic formulation for CHB. The results revealed that tLNP/siHBV significantly reduced the expression of viral antigens and DNA (up to 3log10 reduction; vs PBS) in dose- and time-dependent manners at single-dose or multi-dose frequencies, with satisfactory safety profiles. Further studies showed that tLNP/siHBVIL2 enables additive antigenic and immune control of the virus, via introducing potent HBsAg clearance through RNAi and triggering strong HBV-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses by expressed mIL-2 protein. By adopting tLNP as nucleic acid nanocarriers, the co-delivery of siHBV and mIL-2 mRNA enables synergistic antigenic and immune control of HBV, thus offering a promising translational therapeutic strategy for treating CHB.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjing Zai
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Research Unit of Cure of Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection (CAMS), Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microbes and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China
| | - Min Yang
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center for Synthetic Immunology, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China
| | - Kuan Jiang
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China
- Eye Institute and Department of Ophthamology, Eye and ENT Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China
| | - Juan Guan
- Pharmacy Department of Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China
| | - Huijing Wang
- Institute of Pediatric Translational Medicine, Shanghai Institute for Pediatric Congenital Heart Disease, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Kongying Hu
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Research Unit of Cure of Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection (CAMS), Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microbes and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China
| | - Chao Huang
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Research Unit of Cure of Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection (CAMS), Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microbes and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China
| | - Jieliang Chen
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Research Unit of Cure of Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection (CAMS), Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microbes and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China
| | - Wei Fu
- Institute of Pediatric Translational Medicine, Shanghai Institute for Pediatric Congenital Heart Disease, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Changyou Zhan
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China.
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center for Synthetic Immunology, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China.
| | - Zhenghong Yuan
- Key Laboratory of Medical Molecular Virology (MOE/NHC/CAMS), Research Unit of Cure of Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection (CAMS), Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Pathogenic Microbes and Infection, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, P. R. China.
- Shanghai Institute of Infectious Disease and Biosecurity, Shanghai, P. R. China.
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3
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Chapus F, Giraud G, Huchon P, Rodà M, Grand X, Charre C, Goldsmith C, Roca Suarez AA, Martinez MG, Fresquet J, Diederichs A, Locatelli M, Polvèche H, Scholtès C, Chemin I, Hernandez Vargas H, Rivoire M, Bourgeois CF, Zoulim F, Testoni B. Helicases DDX5 and DDX17 promote heterogeneity in HBV transcription termination in infected human hepatocytes. J Hepatol 2024:S0168-8278(24)00351-9. [PMID: 38782119 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhep.2024.05.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2023] [Revised: 03/28/2024] [Accepted: 05/02/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS Transcription termination fine-tunes gene expression and contributes to the specification of RNA function in eukaryotic cells. Transcription termination of HBV is subject to the recognition of the canonical polyadenylation signal (cPAS) common to all viral transcripts. However, the regulation of this cPAS and its impact on viral gene expression and replication is currently unknown. METHODS To unravel the regulation of HBV transcript termination, we implemented a 3' RACE (rapid amplification of cDNA ends)-PCR assay coupled to single molecule sequencing both in in vitro-infected hepatocytes and in chronically infected patients. RESULTS The detection of a previously unidentified transcriptional readthrough indicated that the cPAS was not systematically recognized during HBV replication in vitro and in vivo. Gene expression downregulation experiments demonstrated a role for the RNA helicases DDX5 and DDX17 in promoting viral transcriptional readthrough, which was, in turn, associated with HBV RNA destabilization and decreased HBx protein expression. RNA and chromatin immunoprecipitation, together with mutation of the cPAS sequence, suggested a direct role of DDX5 and DDX17 in functionally linking cPAS recognition to transcriptional readthrough, HBV RNA stability and replication. CONCLUSIONS Our findings identify DDX5 and DDX17 as crucial determinants of HBV transcriptional fidelity and as host restriction factors for HBV replication. IMPACT AND IMPLICATIONS HBV covalently closed circular (ccc)DNA degradation or functional inactivation remains the holy grail for the achievement of HBV cure. Transcriptional fidelity is a cornerstone in the regulation of gene expression. Here, we demonstrate that two helicases, DDX5 and DDX17, inhibit recognition of the HBV polyadenylation signal and thereby transcriptional termination, thus decreasing HBV RNA stability and acting as restriction factors for efficient cccDNA transcription and viral replication. The observation that DDX5 and DDX17 are downregulated in patients chronically infected with HBV suggests a role for these helicases in HBV persistence in vivo. These results open new perspectives for researchers aiming at identifying new targets to neutralise cccDNA transcription.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fleur Chapus
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon, UMR_S1052, CRCL, 69008 Lyon, France
| | - Guillaume Giraud
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France
| | - Pélagie Huchon
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon, UMR_S1052, CRCL, 69008 Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France
| | - Mélanie Rodà
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France
| | - Xavier Grand
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France
| | - Caroline Charre
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon, UMR_S1052, CRCL, 69008 Lyon, France; Department of Virology, Croix Rousse Hospital, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | | | - Armando Andres Roca Suarez
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France
| | - Maria-Guadalupe Martinez
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon, UMR_S1052, CRCL, 69008 Lyon, France
| | - Judith Fresquet
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France
| | - Audrey Diederichs
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon, UMR_S1052, CRCL, 69008 Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France
| | - Maëlle Locatelli
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon, UMR_S1052, CRCL, 69008 Lyon, France
| | - Hélène Polvèche
- CECS/AFM, I-Stem, Corbeil-Essonnes, 91100, France; University Claude Bernard of Lyon, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, CNRS UMR 5239, INSERM U1293, Laboratory of Biology and Modelling of the Cell, 69007, Lyon, France
| | - Caroline Scholtès
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon, UMR_S1052, CRCL, 69008 Lyon, France; Department of Virology, Croix Rousse Hospital, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France
| | - Isabelle Chemin
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France
| | | | - Michel Rivoire
- INSERM U1032, Centre Léon Bérard (CLB), 69008 Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France
| | - Cyril F Bourgeois
- University Claude Bernard of Lyon, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, CNRS UMR 5239, INSERM U1293, Laboratory of Biology and Modelling of the Cell, 69007, Lyon, France
| | - Fabien Zoulim
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; University of Lyon, UMR_S1052, CRCL, 69008 Lyon, France; Department of Hepatology, Hospices Civils de Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France.
| | - Barbara Testoni
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR-5286, Cancer Research Center of Lyon (CRCL), Lyon, France; The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, France.
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4
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Guan G, Abulaiti A, Qu C, Chen CC, Gu Z, Yang J, Zhang T, Chen X, Zhou Z, Lu F, Chen X. Multi-omics panoramic analysis of HBV integration, transcriptional regulation, and epigenetic modifications in PLC/PRF/5 cell line. J Med Virol 2024; 96:e29614. [PMID: 38647071 DOI: 10.1002/jmv.29614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024]
Abstract
The clearance or transcriptional silencing of integrated HBV DNA is crucial for achieving a functional cure in patients with chronic hepatitis B and reducing the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma development. The PLC/PRF/5 cell line is commonly used as an in vitro model for studying HBV integration. In this study, we employed a range of multi-omics techniques to gain a panoramic understanding of the characteristics of HBV integration in PLC/PRF/5 cells and to reveal the transcriptional regulatory mechanisms of integrated HBV DNA. Transcriptome long-read sequencing (ONT) was conducted to analyze and characterize the transcriptional activity of different HBV DNA integration sites in PLC/PRF/5 cells. Additionally, we collected data related to epigenetic regulation, including whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS), histone chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq), and assays for transposase-accessible chromatin using sequencing (ATAC-seq), to explore the potential mechanisms involved in the transcriptional regulation of integrated HBV DNA. Long-read RNA sequencing analysis revealed significant transcriptional differences at various integration sites in the PLC/PRF/5 cell line, with higher HBV DNA transcription levels at integration sites on chr11, chr13, and the chr13/chr5 fusion chromosome t (13:5). Combining long-read DNA and RNA sequencing results, we found that transcription of integrated HBV DNA generally starts downstream of the SP1, SP2, or XP promoters. ATAC-seq data confirmed that chromatin accessibility has limited influence on the transcription of integrated HBV DNA in the PLC/PRF/5 cell line. Analysis of WGBS data showed that the methylation intensity of integrated HBV DNA was highly negatively correlated with its transcription level (r = -0.8929, p = 0.0123). After AzaD treatment, the transcription level of integrated HBV DNA significantly increased, especially for the integration chr17, which had the highest level of methylation. Through ChIP-seq data, we observed the association between histone modification of H3K4me3 and H3K9me3 with the transcription of integrated HBV DNA. Our findings suggest that the SP1, SP2 and XP in integrated HBV DNA, methylation level of surrounding host chromosome, and histone modifications affect the transcription of integrated HBV DNA in PLC/PRF/5 cells. This provides important clues for future studies on the expression and regulatory mechanisms of integrated HBV.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guiwen Guan
- Department of Microbiology & Infectious Disease Center, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Abudurexiti Abulaiti
- Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Chenxiao Qu
- Department of Microbiology & Infectious Disease Center, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Chia-Chen Chen
- Department of Microbiology & Infectious Disease Center, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
- National Heart and Lung Institute Faculty of Medicine (NHLI), Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Zhiqiang Gu
- Department of Microbiology & Infectious Disease Center, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Jing Yang
- Medical Research Institute, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ting Zhang
- Department of Microbiology & Infectious Disease Center, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaojie Chen
- Liver Transplantation Center, National Clinical Research Center for Digestive Diseases, Beijing Friendship Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
- Clinical Research Center for Pediatric Liver Transplantation of Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Zhao Zhou
- Department of Microbiology & Infectious Disease Center, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Fengmin Lu
- Department of Microbiology & Infectious Disease Center, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Xiangmei Chen
- Department of Microbiology & Infectious Disease Center, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
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5
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Harris JM, Magri A, Faria AR, Tsukuda S, Balfe P, Wing PAC, McKeating JA. Oxygen-dependent histone lysine demethylase 4 restricts hepatitis B virus replication. J Biol Chem 2024; 300:105724. [PMID: 38325742 PMCID: PMC10914488 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2024.105724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2023] [Revised: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 02/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Mammalian cells have evolved strategies to regulate gene expression when oxygen is limited. Hypoxia-inducible factors (HIF) are the major transcriptional regulators of host gene expression. We previously reported that HIFs bind and activate hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA transcription under low oxygen conditions; however, the global cellular response to low oxygen is mediated by a family of oxygenases that work in concert with HIFs. Recent studies have identified a role for chromatin modifiers in sensing cellular oxygen and orchestrating transcriptional responses, but their role in the HBV life cycle is as yet undefined. We demonstrated that histone lysine demethylase 4 (KDM4) can restrict HBV, and pharmacological or oxygen-mediated inhibition of the demethylase increases viral RNAs derived from both episomal and integrated copies of the viral genome. Sequencing studies demonstrated that KDM4 is a major regulator of the hepatic transcriptome, which defines hepatocellular permissivity to HBV infection. We propose a model where HBV exploits cellular oxygen sensors to replicate and persist in the liver. Understanding oxygen-dependent pathways that regulate HBV infection will facilitate the development of physiologically relevant cell-based models that support efficient HBV replication.
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Affiliation(s)
- James M Harris
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Andrea Magri
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Ana Rita Faria
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Senko Tsukuda
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Peter Balfe
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Peter A C Wing
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK; Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Oxford Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
| | - Jane A McKeating
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK; Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Oxford Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
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6
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Mbelle M, Dusheiko G. HBV eradication from the host: Current understanding and challenges. Clin Liver Dis (Hoboken) 2024; 23:e0188. [PMID: 38841198 PMCID: PMC11152883 DOI: 10.1097/cld.0000000000000188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2023] [Accepted: 03/25/2024] [Indexed: 06/07/2024] Open
Abstract
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7
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Dobrica MO, Varghese CS, Harris JM, Ferguson J, Magri A, Arnold R, Várnai C, Parish JL, McKeating JA. CTCF regulates hepatitis B virus cccDNA chromatin topology. J Gen Virol 2024; 105. [PMID: 38175123 DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.001939] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) is a small DNA virus that replicates via an episomal covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA) that serves as the transcriptional template for viral mRNAs. The host protein, CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF), is a key regulator of cellular transcription by maintaining epigenetic boundaries, nucleosome phasing, stabilisation of long-range chromatin loops and directing alternative exon splicing. We previously reported that CTCF binds two conserved motifs within Enhancer I of the HBV genome and represses viral transcription, however, the underlying mechanisms were not identified. We show that CTCF depletion in cells harbouring cccDNA-like HBV molecules and in de novo infected cells resulted in an increase in spliced transcripts, which was most notable in the abundant SP1 spliced transcript. In contrast, depletion of CTCF in cell lines with integrated HBV DNA had no effect on the abundance of viral transcripts and in line with this observation there was limited evidence for CTCF binding to viral integrants, suggesting that CTCF-regulation of HBV transcription is specific to episomal cccDNA. Analysis of HBV chromatin topology by Assay for Transposase Accessible Chromatin Sequencing (ATAC-Seq) revealed an accessible region spanning Enhancers I and II and the basal core promoter (BCP). Mutating the CTCF binding sites within Enhancer I resulted in a dramatic rearrangement of chromatin accessibility where the open chromatin region was no longer detected, indicating loss of the phased nucleosome up- and down-stream of the HBV enhancer/BCP. These data demonstrate that CTCF functions to regulate HBV chromatin conformation and nucleosomal positioning in episomal maintained cccDNA, which has important consequences for HBV transcription regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mihaela Olivia Dobrica
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Present address: Institute of Biochemistry of the Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Christy Susan Varghese
- Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | | | - Jack Ferguson
- Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
- Present address: Institute of Microbiology and Infection, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Andrea Magri
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Roland Arnold
- Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Csilla Várnai
- Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Joanna L Parish
- Institute of Cancer and Genomic Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
- National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Birmingham Biomedical Research Centre, Oxford, UK
| | - Jane A McKeating
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Oxford Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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8
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Fukano K, Wakae K, Nao N, Saito M, Tsubota A, Toyoshima T, Aizaki H, Iijima H, Matsudaira T, Kimura M, Watashi K, Sugiura W, Muramatsu M. A versatile method to profile hepatitis B virus DNA integration. Hepatol Commun 2023; 7:e0328. [PMID: 38051537 PMCID: PMC10697629 DOI: 10.1097/hc9.0000000000000328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 12/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND HBV DNA integration into the host genome is frequently found in HBV-associated HCC tissues and is associated with hepatocarcinogenesis. Multiple detection methods, including hybrid capture-sequencing, have identified integration sites and provided clinical implications; however, each has advantages and disadvantages concerning sensitivity, cost, and throughput. Therefore, methods that can comprehensively and cost-effectively detect integration sites with high sensitivity are required. Here, we investigated the efficiency of RAISING (Rapid Amplification of Integration Site without Interference by Genomic DNA contamination) as a simple and inexpensive method to detect viral integration by amplifying HBV-integrated fragments using virus-specific primers covering the entire HBV genome. METHODS AND RESULTS Illumina sequencing of RAISING products from HCC-derived cell lines (PLC/PRF/5 and Hep3B cells) identified HBV-human junction sequences as well as their frequencies. The HBV-human junction profiles identified using RAISING were consistent with those determined using hybrid capture-sequencing, and the representative junctions could be validated by junction-specific nested PCR. The comparison of these detection methods revealed that RAISING-sequencing outperforms hybrid capture-sequencing in concentrating junction sequences. RAISING-sequencing was also demonstrated to determine the sites of de novo integration in HBV-infected HepG2-NTCP cells, primary human hepatocytes, liver-humanized mice, and clinical specimens. Furthermore, we made use of xenograft mice subcutaneously engrafted with PLC/PRF/5 or Hep3B cells, and HBV-human junctions determined by RAISING-sequencing were detectable in the plasma cell-free DNA using droplet digital PCR. CONCLUSIONS RAISING successfully profiles HBV-human junction sequences with smaller amounts of sequencing data and at a lower cost than hybrid capture-sequencing. This method is expected to aid basic HBV integration and clinical diagnosis research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kento Fukano
- Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan
- Center for Clinical Sciences, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kousho Wakae
- Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Naganori Nao
- Division of International Research Promotion, International Institute for Zoonosis Control, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- One Health Research Center, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Institute for Vaccine Research and Development, HU-IVReD, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Masumichi Saito
- Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan
- Center for Emergency Preparedness and Response, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Akihito Tsubota
- Research Center for Medical Science, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Takae Toyoshima
- Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Hideki Aizaki
- Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Hiroko Iijima
- Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Disease, Hyogo Medical University, Hyogo, Japan
| | - Takahiro Matsudaira
- Biotechnological Research Support Division, FASMAC Co., Ltd., Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Moto Kimura
- Center for Clinical Sciences, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Koichi Watashi
- Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan
- Research Center for Drug and Vaccine Development, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Wataru Sugiura
- Center for Clinical Sciences, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Masamichi Muramatsu
- Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan
- Department of Infectious Disease Research, Foundation for Biomedical Research and Innovation at Kobe, Kobe, Japan
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9
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Klever MK, Sträng E, Hetzel S, Jungnitsch J, Dolnik A, Schöpflin R, Schrezenmeier JF, Schick F, Blau O, Westermann J, Rücker FG, Xia Z, Döhner K, Schrezenmeier H, Spielmann M, Meissner A, Melo US, Mundlos S, Bullinger L. AML with complex karyotype: extreme genomic complexity revealed by combined long-read sequencing and Hi-C technology. Blood Adv 2023; 7:6520-6531. [PMID: 37582288 PMCID: PMC10632680 DOI: 10.1182/bloodadvances.2023010887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2023] [Revised: 07/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/30/2023] [Indexed: 08/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Acute myeloid leukemia with complex karyotype (CK-AML) is associated with poor prognosis, which is only in part explained by underlying TP53 mutations. Especially in the presence of complex chromosomal rearrangements, such as chromothripsis, the outcome of CK-AML is dismal. However, this degree of complexity of genomic rearrangements contributes to the leukemogenic phenotype and treatment resistance of CK-AML remains largely unknown. Applying an integrative workflow for the detection of structural variants (SVs) based on Oxford Nanopore (ONT) genomic DNA long-read sequencing (gDNA-LRS) and high-throughput chromosome confirmation capture (Hi-C) in a well-defined cohort of CK-AML identified regions with an extreme density of SVs. These rearrangements consisted to a large degree of focal amplifications enriched in the proximity of mammalian-wide interspersed repeat elements, which often result in oncogenic fusion transcripts, such as USP7::MVD, or the deregulation of oncogenic driver genes as confirmed by RNA-seq and ONT direct complementary DNA sequencing. We termed this novel phenomenon chromocataclysm. Thus, our integrative SV detection workflow combing gDNA-LRS and Hi-C enables to unravel complex genomic rearrangements at a very high resolution in regions hard to analyze by conventional sequencing technology, thereby providing an important tool to identify novel important drivers underlying cancer with complex karyotypic changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marius-Konstantin Klever
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Cancer Immunology, Medical Department, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
- RG Development and Disease, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
- Institute for Medical Genetics and Human Genetics, Charité University Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Eric Sträng
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Cancer Immunology, Medical Department, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Sara Hetzel
- Department of Genome Regulation, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
| | - Julius Jungnitsch
- Institute for Medical Genetics and Human Genetics, Charité University Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Human Molecular Genomics Group, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
| | - Anna Dolnik
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Cancer Immunology, Medical Department, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Robert Schöpflin
- RG Development and Disease, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
- Institute for Medical Genetics and Human Genetics, Charité University Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Computational Molecular Biology, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jens-Florian Schrezenmeier
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Cancer Immunology, Medical Department, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Felix Schick
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Cancer Immunology, Medical Department, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Olga Blau
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Cancer Immunology, Medical Department, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
- Labor Berlin – Charité Vivantes GmbH, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jörg Westermann
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Cancer Immunology, Medical Department, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
- Labor Berlin – Charité Vivantes GmbH, Berlin, Germany
| | - Frank G. Rücker
- Department of Internal Medicine III, University Hospital of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Zuyao Xia
- Department of Internal Medicine III, University Hospital of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Konstanze Döhner
- Department of Internal Medicine III, University Hospital of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Hubert Schrezenmeier
- Institute of Transfusion Medicine, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany
- Institute for Clinical Transfusion Medicine and Immunogenetics, German Red Cross Blood Transfusion Service Baden-Württemberg-Hessen and University Hospital Ulm, Ulm, Germany
| | - Malte Spielmann
- Human Molecular Genomics Group, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
- Institut für Humangenetik Lübeck, Universität zu Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Alexander Meissner
- Department of Genome Regulation, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
| | - Uirá Souto Melo
- RG Development and Disease, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
- Institute for Medical Genetics and Human Genetics, Charité University Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Stefan Mundlos
- RG Development and Disease, Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
- Institute for Medical Genetics and Human Genetics, Charité University Medicine Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Labor Berlin – Charité Vivantes GmbH, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lars Bullinger
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, and Cancer Immunology, Medical Department, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
- Labor Berlin – Charité Vivantes GmbH, Berlin, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK) and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
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10
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MacLennan SA, Marra MA. Oncogenic Viruses and the Epigenome: How Viruses Hijack Epigenetic Mechanisms to Drive Cancer. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24119543. [PMID: 37298494 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24119543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Revised: 05/26/2023] [Accepted: 05/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Globally, viral infections substantially contribute to cancer development. Oncogenic viruses are taxonomically heterogeneous and drive cancers using diverse strategies, including epigenomic dysregulation. Here, we discuss how oncogenic viruses disrupt epigenetic homeostasis to drive cancer and focus on how virally mediated dysregulation of host and viral epigenomes impacts the hallmarks of cancer. To illustrate the relationship between epigenetics and viral life cycles, we describe how epigenetic changes facilitate the human papillomavirus (HPV) life cycle and how changes to this process can spur malignancy. We also highlight the clinical impact of virally mediated epigenetic changes on cancer diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Signe A MacLennan
- Department of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
- Canada's Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre, BC Cancer, Vancouver, BC V5Z 4S6, Canada
| | - Marco A Marra
- Department of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
- Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
- Canada's Michael Smith Genome Sciences Centre, BC Cancer, Vancouver, BC V5Z 4S6, Canada
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11
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Ng E, Dobrica MO, Harris JM, Wu Y, Tsukuda S, Wing PAC, Piazza P, Balfe P, Matthews PC, Ansari MA, McKeating JA. An enrichment protocol and analysis pipeline for long read sequencing of the hepatitis B virus transcriptome. J Gen Virol 2023; 104:001856. [PMID: 37196057 PMCID: PMC10845048 DOI: 10.1099/jgv.0.001856] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 04/21/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of the smallest human DNA viruses and its 3.2 Kb genome encodes multiple overlapping open reading frames, making its viral transcriptome challenging to dissect. Previous studies have combined quantitative PCR and Next Generation Sequencing to identify viral transcripts and splice junctions, however the fragmentation and selective amplification used in short read sequencing precludes the resolution of full length RNAs. Our study coupled an oligonucleotide enrichment protocol with state-of-the-art long read sequencing (PacBio) to identify the repertoire of HBV RNAs. This methodology provides sequencing libraries where up to 25 % of reads are of viral origin and enable the identification of canonical (unspliced), non-canonical (spliced) and chimeric viral-human transcripts. Sequencing RNA isolated from de novo HBV infected cells or those transfected with 1.3 × overlength HBV genomes allowed us to assess the viral transcriptome and to annotate 5' truncations and polyadenylation profiles. The two HBV model systems showed an excellent agreement in the pattern of major viral RNAs, however differences were noted in the abundance of spliced transcripts. Viral-host chimeric transcripts were identified and more commonly found in the transfected cells. Enrichment capture and PacBio sequencing allows the assignment of canonical and non-canonical HBV RNAs using an open-source analysis pipeline that enables the accurate mapping of the HBV transcriptome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Esther Ng
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Mihaela-Olivia Dobrica
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Present address: Institute of Biochemistry of the Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania
| | - James M. Harris
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Yanxia Wu
- Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Senko Tsukuda
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Peter A. C. Wing
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Oxford Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Paolo Piazza
- Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Peter Balfe
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Philippa C. Matthews
- The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK
- Division of Infection and Immunity, University College London, London, UK
| | - M. Azim Ansari
- Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Peter Medawar Building for Pathogen Research, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Jane A. McKeating
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Oxford Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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12
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Lim YS, Kim WR, Dieterich D, Kao JH, Flaherty JF, Yee LJ, Roberts LR, Razavi H, Kennedy PTF. Evidence for Benefits of Early Treatment Initiation for Chronic Hepatitis B. Viruses 2023; 15:v15040997. [PMID: 37112976 PMCID: PMC10142077 DOI: 10.3390/v15040997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2023] [Revised: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/14/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is the most common cause of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) worldwide. Antiviral treatment reduces the risk of HCC and mortality; nonetheless, globally in 2019, only 2.2% of CHB patients received treatment. Current international CHB guidelines recommend antiviral treatment only in subsets of patients with clear evidence of liver damage. This contrasts with hepatitis C or HIV where early treatment is recommended in all infected patients, regardless of end-organ damage. This narrative review aims to provide an overview of data on the early initiation of antiviral treatment and its related potential economic impact. Literature searches were performed using PubMed and abstracts from international liver congresses (2019-2021). Data on risk of disease progression and HCC and the impact of antiviral treatment in currently ineligible patients were summarized. Cost-effectiveness data on early antiviral treatment initiation were also collated. Accumulating molecular, clinical, and economic data suggest that early initiation of antiviral treatment could save many lives through HCC prevention in a highly cost-effective manner. In light of these data, we consider several alternative expanded treatment strategies that might further a simplified 'treatment as prevention' approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Young-Suk Lim
- Department of Gastroenterology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul 05505, Republic of Korea
| | - W Ray Kim
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA 94063, USA
| | - Douglas Dieterich
- Division of Liver Diseases, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Jia-Horng Kao
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Department of Medical Research, Hepatitis Research Center, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei 100, Taiwan
- Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei 110, Taiwan
| | | | | | - Lewis R Roberts
- Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Homie Razavi
- Center for Disease Analysis Foundation, Lafayette, CO 80026, USA
| | - Patrick T F Kennedy
- Barts Liver Centre, Immunobiology, Blizard Institute, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London E1 4NS, UK
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13
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Svicher V, Salpini R, D’Anna S, Piermatteo L, Iannetta M, Malagnino V, Sarmati L. New insights into hepatitis B virus lymphotropism: Implications for HBV-related lymphomagenesis. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1143258. [PMID: 37007163 PMCID: PMC10050604 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1143258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2023] [Accepted: 03/02/2023] [Indexed: 03/17/2023] Open
Abstract
HBV is one of the most widespread hepatitis viruses worldwide, and a correlation between chronic infection and liver cancer has been clearly reported. The carcinogenic capacity of HBV has been reported for other solid tumors, but the largest number of studies focus on its possible lymphomagenic role. To update the correlation between HBV infection and the occurrence of lymphatic or hematologic malignancies, the most recent evidence from epidemiological and in vitro studies has been reported. In the context of hematological malignancies, the strongest epidemiological correlations are with the emergence of lymphomas, in particular non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) (HR 2.10 [95% CI 1.34-3.31], p=0.001) and, more specifically, all NHL B subtypes (HR 2.14 [95% CI 1.61-2.07], p<0.001). Questionable and unconfirmed associations are reported between HBV and NHL T subtypes (HR 1.11 [95% CI 0.88-1.40], p=0.40) and leukemia. The presence of HBV DNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells has been reported by numerous studies, and its integration in the exonic regions of some genes is considered a possible source of carcinogenesis. Some in vitro studies have shown the ability of HBV to infect, albeit not productively, both lymphomonocytes and bone marrow stem cells, whose differentiation is halted by the virus. As demonstrated in animal models, HBV infection of blood cells and the persistence of HBV DNA in peripheral lymphomonocytes and bone marrow stem cells suggests that these cellular compartments may act as HBV reservoirs, allowing replication to resume later in the immunocompromised patients (such as liver transplant recipients) or in subjects discontinuing effective antiviral therapy. The pathogenetic mechanisms at the basis of HBV carcinogenic potential are not known, and more in-depth studies are needed, considering that a clear correlation between chronic HBV infection and hematological malignancies could benefit both antiviral drugs and vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Svicher
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
- Department of Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Romina Salpini
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Stefano D’Anna
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Piermatteo
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
- Department of Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Marco Iannetta
- Clinical Infectious Diseases, Department of System Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Vincenzo Malagnino
- Clinical Infectious Diseases, Department of System Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Loredana Sarmati
- Clinical Infectious Diseases, Department of System Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
- *Correspondence: Loredana Sarmati,
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14
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Gabbia D, De Martin S. Tumor Mutational Burden for Predicting Prognosis and Therapy Outcome of Hepatocellular Carcinoma. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24043441. [PMID: 36834851 PMCID: PMC9960420 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24043441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2023] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/05/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the primary hepatic malignancy, represents the second-highest cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Many efforts have been devoted to finding novel biomarkers for predicting both patients' survival and the outcome of pharmacological treatments, with a particular focus on immunotherapy. In this regard, recent studies have focused on unravelling the role of tumor mutational burden (TMB), i.e., the total number of mutations per coding area of a tumor genome, to ascertain whether it can be considered a reliable biomarker to be used either for the stratification of HCC patients in subgroups with different responsiveness to immunotherapy, or for the prediction of disease progression, particularly in relation to the different HCC etiologies. In this review, we summarize the recent advances on the study of TMB and TMB-related biomarkers in the HCC landscape, focusing on their feasibility as guides for therapy decisions and/or predictors of clinical outcome.
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15
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Yeh SH, Li CL, Lin YY, Ho MC, Wang YC, Tseng ST, Chen PJ. Hepatitis B Virus DNA Integration Drives Carcinogenesis and Provides a New Biomarker for HBV-related HCC. Cell Mol Gastroenterol Hepatol 2023; 15:921-929. [PMID: 36690297 PMCID: PMC9972564 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcmgh.2023.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2022] [Revised: 12/24/2022] [Accepted: 01/02/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA integration is an incidental event in the virus replication cycle and occurs in less than 1% of infected hepatocytes during viral infection. However, HBV DNA is present in the genome of approximately 90% of HBV-related HCCs and is the most common somatic mutation. Whole genome sequencing of liver tissues from chronic hepatitis B patients showed integration occurring at random positions in human chromosomes; however, in the genomes of HBV-related HCC patients, there are integration hotspots. Both the enrichment of the HBV-integration proportion in HCC and the emergence of integration hotspots suggested a strong positive selection of HBV-integrated hepatocytes to progress to HCC. The activation of HBV integration hotspot genes, such as telomerase (TERT) or histone methyltransferase (MLL4/KMT2B), resembles insertional mutagenesis by oncogenic animal retroviruses. These candidate oncogenic genes might shed new light on HBV-related HCC biology and become targets for new cancer therapies. Finally, the HBV integrations in individual HCC contain unique sequences at the junctions, such as virus-host chimera DNA (vh-DNA) presumably being a signature molecule for individual HCC. HBV integration may thus provide a new cell-free tumor DNA biomarker to monitor residual HCC after curative therapies or to track the development of de novo HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiou-Hwei Yeh
- Graduate Institute of Microbiology, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences and Medical Biotechnology, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; National Taiwan University Center for Genomic Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Chiao-Ling Li
- Graduate Institute of Microbiology, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - You-Yu Lin
- Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Genome and Systems Biology Degree Program, National Taiwan University College of Life Science, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Ming-Chih Ho
- Department of Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
| | | | | | - Pei-Jer Chen
- National Taiwan University Center for Genomic Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
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16
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Grudda T, Hwang HS, Taddese M, Quinn J, Sulkowski MS, Sterling RK, Balagopal A, Thio CL. Integrated hepatitis B virus DNA maintains surface antigen production during antiviral treatment. J Clin Invest 2022; 132:e161818. [PMID: 35797115 PMCID: PMC9473722 DOI: 10.1172/jci161818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 07/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The focus of hepatitis B functional cure, defined as sustained loss of hepatitis B virus (HBV) surface antigen (HBsAg) and HBV DNA from blood, is on eliminating or silencing the intranuclear template for HBV replication, covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA). However, HBsAg also derives from HBV DNA integrated into the host genome (iDNA). Little is known about the contribution of iDNA to circulating HBsAg with current therapeutics. We applied a multiplex droplet digital PCR assay to demonstrate that iDNA is responsible for maintaining HBsAg quantities in some individuals. Using paired bulk liver tissue from 16 HIV/HBV-coinfected persons on nucleos(t)ide analog (NUC) therapy, we demonstrate that people with larger HBsAg declines between biopsies derive HBsAg from cccDNA, whereas people with stable HBsAg levels derive predominantly from iDNA. We applied our assay to individual hepatocytes in paired tissues from 3 people and demonstrated that the individual with significant HBsAg decline had a commensurate loss of infected cells with transcriptionally active cccDNA, while individuals without HBsAg decline had stable or increasing numbers of cells producing HBsAg from iDNA. We demonstrate that while NUC therapy may be effective at controlling cccDNA replication and transcription, innovative treatments are required to address iDNA transcription that sustains HBsAg production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanner Grudda
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Hyon S. Hwang
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Maraake Taddese
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Jeffrey Quinn
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Mark S. Sulkowski
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Richard K. Sterling
- Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, USA
| | - Ashwin Balagopal
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Chloe L. Thio
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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17
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Gorsuch CL, Nemec P, Yu M, Xu S, Han D, Smith J, Lape J, van Buuren N, Ramirez R, Muench RC, Holdorf MM, Feierbach B, Falls G, Holt J, Shoop W, Sevigny E, Karriker F, Brown RV, Joshi A, Goodwin T, Tam YK, Lin PJC, Semple SC, Leatherbury N, Delaney Iv WE, Jantz D, Rhoden Smith A. Targeting the hepatitis B cccDNA with a sequence-specific ARCUS nuclease to eliminate hepatitis B virus in vivo. Mol Ther 2022; 30:2909-2922. [PMID: 35581938 PMCID: PMC9481990 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2022.05.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2021] [Revised: 05/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Persistence of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is attributed to maintenance of the intrahepatic pool of the viral covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA), which serves as the transcriptional template for all viral gene products required for replication. Current nucleos(t)ide therapies for CHB prevent virus production and spread but have no direct impact on cccDNA or expression of viral genes. We describe a potential curative approach using a highly specific engineered ARCUS nuclease (ARCUS-POL) targeting the hepatitis B virus (HBV) genome. Transient ARCUS-POL expression in HBV-infected primary human hepatocytes produced substantial reductions in both cccDNA and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). To evaluate ARCUS-POL in vivo, we developed episomal adeno-associated virus (AAV) mouse and non-human primate (NHP) models containing a portion of the HBV genome serving as a surrogate for cccDNA. Clinically relevant delivery was achieved through systemic administration of lipid nanoparticles containing ARCUS-POL mRNA. In both mouse and NHP, we observed a significant decrease in total AAV copy number and high on-target indel frequency. In the case of the mouse model, which supports HBsAg expression, circulating surface antigen was durably reduced by 96%. Together, these data support a gene-editing approach for elimination of cccDNA toward an HBV cure.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Paige Nemec
- Precision BioSciences Inc, Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Mei Yu
- Gilead Sciences, Inc, Foster City, CA 94404, USA
| | - Simin Xu
- Gilead Sciences, Inc, Foster City, CA 94404, USA
| | - Dong Han
- Gilead Sciences, Inc, Foster City, CA 94404, USA
| | - Jeff Smith
- Precision BioSciences Inc, Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Janel Lape
- Precision BioSciences Inc, Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Greg Falls
- Precision BioSciences Inc, Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Jason Holt
- Precision BioSciences Inc, Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Wendy Shoop
- Precision BioSciences Inc, Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | - Emma Sevigny
- Precision BioSciences Inc, Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | | | | | - Amod Joshi
- Precision BioSciences Inc, Durham, NC 27701, USA
| | | | - Ying K Tam
- Acuitas Therapeutics, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z3, Canada
| | | | | | | | | | - Derek Jantz
- Precision BioSciences Inc, Durham, NC 27701, USA.
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18
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Xiang Z, Li J, Lu D, Wei X, Xu X. Advances in multi-omics research on viral hepatitis. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:987324. [PMID: 36118247 PMCID: PMC9478034 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.987324] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2022] [Accepted: 08/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Viral hepatitis is a major global public health problem that affects hundreds of millions of people and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Five biologically unrelated hepatotropic viruses account for the majority of the global burden of viral hepatitis, including hepatitis A virus (HAV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), hepatitis D virus (HDV), and hepatitis E virus (HEV). Omics is defined as the comprehensive study of the functions, relationships and roles of various types of molecules in biological cells. The multi-omics analysis has been proposed and considered key to advancing clinical precision medicine, mainly including genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics, metabolomics. Overall, the applications of multi-omics can show the origin of hepatitis viruses, explore the diagnostic and prognostics biomarkers and screen out the therapeutic targets for viral hepatitis and related diseases. To better understand the pathogenesis of viral hepatitis and related diseases, comprehensive multi-omics analysis has been widely carried out. This review mainly summarizes the applications of multi-omics in different types of viral hepatitis and related diseases, aiming to provide new insight into these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ze Xiang
- Key Laboratory of Integrated Oncology and Intelligent Medicine of Zhejiang Province, Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Affiliated Hangzhou First People’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jiayuan Li
- Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Di Lu
- Key Laboratory of Integrated Oncology and Intelligent Medicine of Zhejiang Province, Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Affiliated Hangzhou First People’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, China
- NHC Key Laboratory of Combined Multi-Organ Transplantation, Hangzhou, China
- Institute of Organ Transplantation, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Xuyong Wei
- Key Laboratory of Integrated Oncology and Intelligent Medicine of Zhejiang Province, Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Affiliated Hangzhou First People’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, China
- NHC Key Laboratory of Combined Multi-Organ Transplantation, Hangzhou, China
- Institute of Organ Transplantation, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
- Xuyong Wei,
| | - Xiao Xu
- Key Laboratory of Integrated Oncology and Intelligent Medicine of Zhejiang Province, Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, Affiliated Hangzhou First People’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, China
- NHC Key Laboratory of Combined Multi-Organ Transplantation, Hangzhou, China
- Institute of Organ Transplantation, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
- *Correspondence: Xiao Xu,
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19
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Conserved Lysine Residues of Hepatitis B Virus Core Protein Are Not Required for Covalently Closed Circular DNA Formation. J Virol 2022; 96:e0071822. [PMID: 35867543 PMCID: PMC9364803 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.00718-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) core protein (HBc), the building block of the viral capsid, plays a critical role throughout the HBV life cycle. There are two highly conserved lysine residues, namely, K7 and K96, on HBc, which have been proposed to function at various stages of viral replication, potentially through lysine-specific posttranslational modifications (PTMs). Here, we substituted K7 and K96 with alanine or arginine, which would also block potential PTMs on these two lysine residues, and tested the effects of these substitutions on HBV replication and infection. We found that the two lysine residues were dispensable for all intracellular steps of HBV replication. In particular, all mutants were competent to form the covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA) via the intracellular amplification pathway, indicating that K7 and K96, or any PTMs of these residues, were not essential for nucleocapsid uncoating, a prerequisite for cccDNA formation. Furthermore, we found that K7A and K7R mutations did not affect de novo cccDNA formation and RNA transcription during infection, indicating that K7 or any PTMs of this residue were dispensable for HBV infection. In addition, we demonstrated that the HBc K7 coding sequence (AAA), as part of the HBV polyadenylation signal UAUAAA, was indispensable for viral RNA production, implicating this cis requirement at the RNA level, instead of any function of HBc-K7, likely constrains the identity of the 7th residue of HBc. In conclusion, our results provided novel insights regarding the roles of lysine residues on HBc, and their coding sequences, in the HBV life cycle. IMPORTANCE Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection remains a public health burden that affects 296 million individuals worldwide. HBV core protein (HBc) is involved in almost all steps in the HBV life cycle. There are two conserved lysine residues on HBc. Here, we found that neither of them is essential for HBV intracellular replication, including the formation of covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA), the molecular basis for establishing and sustaining the HBV infection. However, K96 is critical for virion morphogenesis, while the K7 coding sequence, but not HBc-K7 itself, is indispensable, as part of the RNA polyadenylation signal, for HBV RNA production from cccDNA. Our results provide novel insights regarding the role of the conserved lysine residues on HBc, and their coding sequences, in viral replication, and should facilitate the development of antiviral drugs against the HBV capsid protein.
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20
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Maslac O, Wagner J, Sozzi V, Mason H, Svarovskaia J, Tan S, Gaggar A, Locarnini S, Yuen L, Littlejohn M, Revill PA. Secreted hepatitis B virus splice variants differ by HBV genotype and across phases of chronic hepatitis B infection. J Viral Hepat 2022; 29:604-615. [PMID: 35582878 PMCID: PMC9544302 DOI: 10.1111/jvh.13702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Revised: 04/25/2022] [Accepted: 04/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/09/2022]
Abstract
Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is characterized by progression through different phases of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and disease. Although not necessary for HBV replication, there is increasing evidence that HBV splice variants are associated with liver disease progression and pathogenesis. However, there have been no studies till date on the frequency or diversity of splice variants for different HBV genotypes across the phases of CHB. Next generation sequencing data from 404 patient samples of HBV genotype A, B, C or D in Phase I, Phase II or Phase IV of CHB was analysed for HBV splice variants using an in house bioinformatics pipeline. HBV splice variants differed in frequency and type by genotype and phase of natural history. Splice variant Sp1 was the most frequently detected (206/404, 51% of patients), followed by Sp13 (151/404 37% of patients). The frequency of variants was generally highest in Phase II (123/165, 75% of patients), a phase typically associated with enhanced immune activation, followed by Phase I (69/99, 70% of patients). Splice variants were associated with reduced hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) levels and statistically reduced likelihood of achieving HBsAg loss (functional cure) in Phase II patients for Sp1 and Sp13 (p = .0014 and .0156, respectively). The frequency of HBV splice variants in patient serum differed markedly by HBV genotype and phase of CHB natural history. The increased levels of HBV splice variants detected in CHB phase II patients compared with the higher replicative Phase I in particular warrants further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivia Maslac
- Division of Molecular Research and DevelopmentVictorian Infectious Diseases Reference LaboratoryPeter Doherty Institute for Infection and ImmunityRoyal Melbourne HospitalMelbourneVictoriaAustralia,Department of MicrobiologyMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia
| | - Josef Wagner
- Division of Molecular Research and DevelopmentVictorian Infectious Diseases Reference LaboratoryPeter Doherty Institute for Infection and ImmunityRoyal Melbourne HospitalMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Vitina Sozzi
- Division of Molecular Research and DevelopmentVictorian Infectious Diseases Reference LaboratoryPeter Doherty Institute for Infection and ImmunityRoyal Melbourne HospitalMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Hugh Mason
- Division of Molecular Research and DevelopmentVictorian Infectious Diseases Reference LaboratoryPeter Doherty Institute for Infection and ImmunityRoyal Melbourne HospitalMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | | | | | | | - Stephen Locarnini
- Division of Molecular Research and DevelopmentVictorian Infectious Diseases Reference LaboratoryPeter Doherty Institute for Infection and ImmunityRoyal Melbourne HospitalMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Lilly Yuen
- Division of Molecular Research and DevelopmentVictorian Infectious Diseases Reference LaboratoryPeter Doherty Institute for Infection and ImmunityRoyal Melbourne HospitalMelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Margaret Littlejohn
- Division of Molecular Research and DevelopmentVictorian Infectious Diseases Reference LaboratoryPeter Doherty Institute for Infection and ImmunityRoyal Melbourne HospitalMelbourneVictoriaAustralia,Department of Infectious DiseasesUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Peter A. Revill
- Division of Molecular Research and DevelopmentVictorian Infectious Diseases Reference LaboratoryPeter Doherty Institute for Infection and ImmunityRoyal Melbourne HospitalMelbourneVictoriaAustralia,Department of MicrobiologyMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia,Department of Microbiology and ImmunologyUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
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21
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Magri A, Harris JM, D'Arienzo V, Minisini R, Jühling F, Wing PAC, Rapetti R, Leutner M, Testoni B, Baumert TF, Zoulim F, Balfe P, Pirisi M, McKeating JA. Inflammatory Gene Expression Associates with Hepatitis B Virus cccDNA- but Not Integrant-Derived Transcripts in HBeAg Negative Disease. Viruses 2022; 14:1070. [PMID: 35632812 PMCID: PMC9146050 DOI: 10.3390/v14051070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2022] [Revised: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a global health problem that presents as a spectrum of liver disease, reflecting an interplay between the virus and the host immune system. HBV genomes exist as episomal covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA) or chromosomal integrants. The relative contribution of these genomes to the viral transcriptome in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is not well-understood. We developed a qPCR method to estimate the abundance of HBV cccDNA- and integrant-derived viral transcripts and applied this to a cohort of patients diagnosed with CHB in the HBe antigen negative phase of disease. We noted a variable pattern of HBV transcripts from both DNA templates, with preS1/S2 mRNAs predominating and a significant association between increasing age and the expression of integrant-derived mRNAs, but not with inflammatory status. In contrast, cccDNA-derived transcripts were associated with markers of liver inflammation. Analysis of the inflammatory hepatic transcriptome identified 24 genes significantly associated with cccDNA transcriptional activity. Our study uncovers an immune gene signature that associates with HBV cccDNA transcription and increases our understanding of viral persistence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Magri
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7FZ, UK
| | - James M Harris
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7FZ, UK
| | | | - Rosalba Minisini
- Department of Translational Medicine, Università del Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
| | - Frank Jühling
- Institut de Recherche sur les Maladies Virales et Hépatiques, University of Strasbourg and Inserm, UMR_S1110, F-67000 Strasbourg, France
| | - Peter A C Wing
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7FZ, UK
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Oxford Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 4BH, UK
| | - Rachele Rapetti
- Department of Translational Medicine, Università del Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
| | - Monica Leutner
- Department of Diagnostic Services and Supportive Therapies, ASL Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, 28887 Omegna, Italy
| | - Barbara Testoni
- Cancer Research Center of Lyon, UMR INSERM 1052, 69008 Lyon, France
| | - Thomas F Baumert
- Institut de Recherche sur les Maladies Virales et Hépatiques, University of Strasbourg and Inserm, UMR_S1110, F-67000 Strasbourg, France
- Pôle Hépato-Digestif, Institut Hopitalo-Universitaire, Hôpitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, 67000 Strasbourg, France
- Institut Universitaire de France, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Fabien Zoulim
- Cancer Research Center of Lyon, UMR INSERM 1052, 69008 Lyon, France
| | - Peter Balfe
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7FZ, UK
| | - Mario Pirisi
- Department of Translational Medicine, Università del Piemonte Orientale, 28100 Novara, Italy
| | - Jane A McKeating
- Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7FZ, UK
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Oxford Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 4BH, UK
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22
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Walker K, Kalra D, Lowdon R, Chen G, Molik D, Soto DC, Dabbaghie F, Khleifat AA, Mahmoud M, Paulin LF, Raza MS, Pfeifer SP, Agustinho DP, Aliyev E, Avdeyev P, Barrozo ER, Behera S, Billingsley K, Chong LC, Choubey D, De Coster W, Fu Y, Gener AR, Hefferon T, Henke DM, Höps W, Illarionova A, Jochum MD, Jose M, Kesharwani RK, Kolora SRR, Kubica J, Lakra P, Lattimer D, Liew CS, Lo BW, Lo C, Lötter A, Majidian S, Mendem SK, Mondal R, Ohmiya H, Parvin N, Peralta C, Poon CL, Prabhakaran R, Saitou M, Sammi A, Sanio P, Sapoval N, Syed N, Treangen T, Wang G, Xu T, Yang J, Zhang S, Zhou W, Sedlazeck FJ, Busby B. The third international hackathon for applying insights into large-scale genomic composition to use cases in a wide range of organisms. F1000Res 2022; 11:530. [PMID: 36262335 PMCID: PMC9557141 DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.110194.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
In October 2021, 59 scientists from 14 countries and 13 U.S. states collaborated virtually in the Third Annual Baylor College of Medicine & DNANexus Structural Variation hackathon. The goal of the hackathon was to advance research on structural variants (SVs) by prototyping and iterating on open-source software. This led to nine hackathon projects focused on diverse genomics research interests, including various SV discovery and genotyping methods, SV sequence reconstruction, and clinically relevant structural variation, including SARS-CoV-2 variants. Repositories for the projects that participated in the hackathon are available at https://github.com/collaborativebioinformatics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly Walker
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA,
| | - Divya Kalra
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA,
| | | | - Guangyi Chen
- Drug Bioinformatics, Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS), Saarbrücken, Germany,Center for Bioinformatics, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany,
| | - David Molik
- Tropical Crop and Commodity Protection Research Unit, Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center, Hilo, HI, 96720, USA
| | - Daniela C. Soto
- Biochemistry & Molecular Medicine, Genome Center, MIND Institute, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, 95616, USA
| | - Fawaz Dabbaghie
- Drug Bioinformatics, Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS), Saarbrücken, Germany,Institute for Medical Biometry and Bioinformatics, University hospital Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Ahmad Al Khleifat
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Medhat Mahmoud
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Luis F Paulin
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Muhammad Sohail Raza
- CAS Key Laboratory of Genomic and Precision Medicine, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Beijing, China
| | - Susanne P. Pfeifer
- Center for Evolution and Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Daniel Paiva Agustinho
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Elbay Aliyev
- Research Department, Sidra Medicine, Doha, Qatar
| | - Pavel Avdeyev
- Computational Biology Institute, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, 20052, USA
| | - Enrico R. Barrozo
- Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Sairam Behera
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Kimberley Billingsley
- Molecular Genetics Section, Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Li Chuin Chong
- Beykoz Institute of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Bezmialem Vakif University, Beykoz, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Deepak Choubey
- Department of Technology, Savitribai Phule Pune University, Pune, Maharashtra, India
| | - Wouter De Coster
- Applied and Translational Neurogenomics Group, VIB Center for Molecular Neurology, Antwerp, Belgium,Applied and Translational Neurogenomics Group, Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Yilei Fu
- Department of Computer Science, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Alejandro R. Gener
- Association of Public Health Labs, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Downey, CA, USA
| | - Timothy Hefferon
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - David Morgan Henke
- Department Molecular Virology and Microbiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Wolfram Höps
- EMBL Heidelberg, Genome Biology Unit, Heidelberg, Germany
| | | | - Michael D. Jochum
- Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | - Maria Jose
- Centre for Bioinformatics, Pondicherry University, Pondicherry, India
| | - Rupesh K. Kesharwani
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA
| | | | | | - Priya Lakra
- Department of Zoology, University of Delhi, Delhi, India
| | - Damaris Lattimer
- University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria - FH Hagenberg, Mühlkreis, Austria
| | - Chia-Sin Liew
- Center for Biotechnology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska, 68588, USA
| | - Bai-Wei Lo
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Chunhsuan Lo
- Human Genetics Laboratory, National Institute of Genetics, Japan, Mishima City, Japan
| | - Anneri Lötter
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Sina Majidian
- Department of Computational Biology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | | | - Rajarshi Mondal
- Department of Biotechnology, The University of Burdwan, West Bengal, India
| | - Hiroko Ohmiya
- Genetic Reagent Development Unit, Medical & Biological Laboratories Co., Ltd., Tokoyo, Japan
| | - Nasrin Parvin
- Department of Biotechnology, The University of Burdwan, West Bengal, India
| | | | | | | | - Marie Saitou
- Center of Integrative Genetics (CIGENE),Faculty of Biosciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, As, Norway
| | - Aditi Sammi
- School of Biochemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology (BHU), Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Philippe Sanio
- University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria - FH Hagenberg, Hagenberg im Mühlkreis, Austria
| | - Nicolae Sapoval
- Department of Computer Science, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Najeeb Syed
- Research Department, Sidra Medicine, Doha, Qatar
| | - Todd Treangen
- Department of Computer Science, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | | | - Tiancheng Xu
- Department of Computer Science, Rice University, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Jianzhi Yang
- Department of Quantitative and Computational Biology,, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Shangzhe Zhang
- School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Weiyu Zhou
- Department of Statistical Science, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA
| | - Fritz J Sedlazeck
- Human Genome Sequencing Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, 77030, USA,
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23
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van Buuren N, Ramirez R, Soulette C, Suri V, Han D, May L, Turner S, Parvangada P, Martin R, Chan HLY, Marcellin P, Buti M, Bui N, Bhardwaj N, Gaggar A, Li L, Mo H, Feierbach B. Targeted long-read sequencing reveals clonally expanded HBV-associated chromosomal translocations in patients with chronic hepatitis B. JHEP Rep 2022; 4:100449. [PMID: 35295767 PMCID: PMC8918852 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhepr.2022.100449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2021] [Revised: 01/27/2022] [Accepted: 01/31/2022] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background & Aims Methods Results Conclusions Lay summary Fresh frozen liver biopsies from patients with CHB were subjected to targeted long-read RNA and DNA sequencing. Inter-chromosomal translocations associated with HBV integration events detected in one-third of patients. Chromosomal translocations were unique to each biopsy sample, suggesting that each originated randomly. A larger fraction of the HBV transcriptome originates from cccDNA in patients who are HBeAg-positive.
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24
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Salpini R, D’Anna S, Benedetti L, Piermatteo L, Gill U, Svicher V, Kennedy PTF. Hepatitis B virus DNA integration as a novel biomarker of hepatitis B virus-mediated pathogenetic properties and a barrier to the current strategies for hepatitis B virus cure. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:972687. [PMID: 36118192 PMCID: PMC9478028 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.972687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2022] [Accepted: 08/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic infection with Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) is a major cause of liver-related morbidity and mortality worldwide. HBV-DNA integration into the human genome is recognized as a frequent event occurring during the early phases of HBV infection and characterizing the entire course of HBV natural history. The development of refined molecular biology technologies sheds new light on the functional implications of HBV-DNA integration into the human genome, including its role in the progression of HBV-related pathogenesis and in triggering the establishment of pro-oncogenic mechanisms, promoting the development of hepatocellular carcinoma. The present review provides an updated and comprehensive overview of the current body of knowledge on HBV-DNA integration, focusing on the molecular mechanisms underlying HBV-DNA integration and its occurrence throughout the different phases characterizing the natural history of HBV infection. Furthermore, here we discuss the main clinical implications of HBV integration as a biomarker of HBV-related pathogenesis, particularly in reference to hepatocarcinogenesis, and how integration may act as a barrier to the achievement of HBV cure with current and novel antiviral therapies. Overall, a more refined insight into the mechanisms and functionality of HBV integration is paramount, since it can potentially inform the design of ad hoc diagnostic tools with the ability to reveal HBV integration events perturbating relevant intracellular pathways and for identifying novel therapeutic strategies targeting alterations directly related to HBV integration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Romina Salpini
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Roma, Italy
| | - Stefano D’Anna
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Roma, Italy
| | - Livia Benedetti
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Roma, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Piermatteo
- Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Roma, Italy
| | - Upkar Gill
- Barts Liver Centre, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Blizard Institute, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Valentina Svicher
- Department of Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Roma, Italy
- *Correspondence: Valentina Svicher,
| | - Patrick T. F. Kennedy
- Barts Liver Centre, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Blizard Institute, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
- Patrick T. F. Kennedy,
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25
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van Buuren N, Ramirez R, Turner S, Chen D, Suri V, Aggarwal A, Moon C, Kim S, Kornyeyev D, Bui N, Bhardwaj N, Chan HL, Marcellin P, Buti M, Wallin J, Gaggar A, Fletcher SP, Diehl L, Li L, Mo H, Feierbach B. Characterization of the liver immune microenvironment in liver biopsies from patients with chronic HBV infection. JHEP REPORTS : INNOVATION IN HEPATOLOGY 2021; 4:100388. [PMID: 34950863 PMCID: PMC8671126 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhepr.2021.100388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Revised: 09/10/2021] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Background & Aims We aim to describe the liver immune microenvironment by analyzing liver biopsies from patients with chronic HBV infection (CHB). Host immune cell signatures and their corresponding localization were characterized by analyzing the intrahepatic transcriptome in combination with a custom multiplex immunofluorescence panel. Method Matching FFPE and fresh frozen liver biopsies were collected from immune active patients within the open-label phase IV study GS-US-174-0149. RNA-Seq was conducted on 53 CHB liver biopsies from 46 patients. Twenty-eight of the 53 samples had matched FFPE biopsies and were stained with a 12-plex panel including cell segmentation, immune and viral biomarkers. Corresponding serum samples were screened using the MSD Human V-plex Screen Service to identify peripheral correlates for the immune microenvironment. Results Using unsupervised clustering of the transcriptome, we reveal two unique liver immune signatures classified as immune high and immune low based on the quantification of the liver infiltrate gene signatures. Multiplex immunofluorescence analysis demonstrated large periportal lymphoid aggregates in immune high samples consisting of CD4 and CD8 T cells, B cells and macrophages. Differentiation of the high and low immune microenvironments was independent of HBeAg status and peripheral viral antigen levels. In addition, longitudinal analysis indicates that treatment and normalization of ALT correlates with a decrease in liver immune infiltrate and inflammation. Finally, we screened a panel of peripheral biomarkers and identified ICAM-1 and CXCL10 as biomarkers that strongly correlate with these unique immune microenvironments. Conclusion These data provide a description of immune phenotypes in patients with CHB and show that immune responses are downregulated in the liver following nucleotide analogue treatment. This may have important implications for both the safety and efficacy of immune modulator programs aimed at HBV cure. Lay summary Liver biopsies from patients with chronic hepatitis B were submitted to RNA-Seq and multiplex immunofluorescence and identified two different liver immune microenvironments: immune high and immune low. Immune high patients showed elevated immune pathways, including interferon signaling pathways, and increase presence of immune cells. Longitudinal analysis of biopsies from treatment experienced patients showed that treatment correlates with a marked decrease in inflammation and these findings may have important implications for both safety and efficacy of immune modulator programs for HBV cure.
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Key Words
- ALT, alanine aminotransferase
- BCR, B-cell receptor
- CHB, chronic HBV infection
- Chronic HBV
- DEG, differentially expressed gene
- FFPE, formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded
- Hepatitis B
- IHC, immunohistochemistry
- Immune Microenvironment
- Intrahepatic transcriptome
- PEG-IFNα, pegylated-interferon-α
- TCR, T-cell receptor
- TDF, tenofovir disoproxil fumarate
- TLS, tertiary lymphoid structures
- mIF, multiplex immunofluorescence
- multiplex immunofluorescence
- ssGSEA, single sample gene set enrichment analysis
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas van Buuren
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Ricardo Ramirez
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Scott Turner
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Diana Chen
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Vithika Suri
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Abhishek Aggarwal
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Christina Moon
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Sam Kim
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Dmytro Kornyeyev
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Nam Bui
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Neeru Bhardwaj
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States.,Current address: Foundation Medicine, Cambridge, MA, 02141, United States
| | | | | | - Maria Buti
- Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Jeffrey Wallin
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Anuj Gaggar
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Simon P Fletcher
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Lauri Diehl
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Li Li
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Hongmei Mo
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
| | - Becket Feierbach
- Gilead Sciences Inc. 324 Lakeside Dr., Foster City, CA, 94404, United States
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