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Juang HH, Hsu CW, Chang KS, Iang SB, Lin YH, Chao M. Investigating the Genetic Diversity of Hepatitis Delta Virus in Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC): Impact on Viral Evolution and Oncogenesis in HCC. Viruses 2024; 16:817. [PMID: 38932110 PMCID: PMC11209585 DOI: 10.3390/v16060817] [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: 03/21/2024] [Revised: 05/16/2024] [Accepted: 05/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis delta virus (HDV), an RNA virus with two forms of the delta antigen (HDAg), relies on hepatitis B virus (HBV) for envelope proteins essential for hepatocyte entry. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) ranks third in global cancer deaths, yet HDV's involvement remains uncertain. Among 300 HBV-associated HCC serum samples from Taiwan's National Health Research Institutes, 2.7% (8/300) tested anti-HDV positive, with 62.7% (5/8) of these also HDV RNA positive. Genotyping revealed HDV-2 in one sample, HDV-4 in two, and two samples showed mixed HDV-2/HDV-4 infection with RNA recombination. A mixed-genotype infection revealed novel mutations at the polyadenylation signal, coinciding with the ochre termination codon for the L-HDAg. To delve deeper into the possible oncogenic properties of HDV-2, the predominant genotype in Taiwan, which was previously thought to be less associated with severe disease outcomes, an HDV-2 cDNA clone was isolated from HCC for study. It demonstrated a replication level reaching up to 74% of that observed for a widely used HDV-1 strain in transfected cultured cells. Surprisingly, both forms of HDV-2 HDAg promoted cell migration and invasion, affecting the rearrangement of actin cytoskeleton and the expression of epithelial-mesenchymal transition markers. In summary, this study underscores the prevalence of HDV-2, HDV-4, and their mixed infections in HCC, highlighting the genetic diversity in HCC as well as the potential role of both forms of the HDAg in HCC oncogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Horng-Heng Juang
- Department of Anatomy, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan; (H.-H.J.); (K.-S.C.)
- Department of Urology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan
| | - Chao-Wei Hsu
- Liver Research Center, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan; (C.-W.H.); (Y.-H.L.)
- School of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan
| | - Kang-Shuo Chang
- Department of Anatomy, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan; (H.-H.J.); (K.-S.C.)
| | - Shan-Bei Iang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology and Division of Microbiology, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan;
| | - Yang-Hsiang Lin
- Liver Research Center, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan; (C.-W.H.); (Y.-H.L.)
| | - Mei Chao
- Liver Research Center, Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan; (C.-W.H.); (Y.-H.L.)
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology and Division of Microbiology, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan 333, Taiwan;
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2
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Dexheimer S, Shrestha N, Chapagain BS, Bujarski JJ, Yin Y. Characterization of Variant RNAs Encapsidated during Bromovirus Infection by High-Throughput Sequencing. Pathogens 2024; 13:96. [PMID: 38276169 PMCID: PMC10819421 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens13010096] [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: 11/07/2023] [Revised: 01/13/2024] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 01/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Previously, we described the RNA recombinants accumulating in tissues infected with the bromoviruses BMV (Brome mosaic virus) and CCMV (Cowpea chlorotic mottle virus). In this work, we characterize the recombinants encapsidated inside the purified virion particles of BMV and CCMV. By using a tool called the Viral Recombination Mapper (ViReMa) that detects recombination junctions, we analyzed a high number of high-throughput sequencing (HTS) short RNA sequence reads. Over 28% of BMV or CCMV RNA reads did not perfectly map to the viral genomes. ViReMa identified 1.40% and 1.83% of these unmapped reads as the RNA recombinants, respectively, in BMV and CCMV. Intra-segmental crosses were more frequent than the inter-segmental ones. Most intra-segmental junctions carried short insertions/deletions (indels) and caused frameshift mutations. The mutation hotspots clustered mainly within the open reading frames. Substitutions of various lengths were also identified, whereas a small fraction of crosses occurred between viral and their host RNAs. Our data reveal that the virions can package detectable amounts of multivariate recombinant RNAs, contributing to the flexible nature of the viral genomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Dexheimer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Plant Molecular and Bioinformatics Center, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115, USA; (S.D.); (N.S.); (B.S.C.)
| | - Nipin Shrestha
- Department of Biological Sciences, Plant Molecular and Bioinformatics Center, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115, USA; (S.D.); (N.S.); (B.S.C.)
| | - Bandana Sharma Chapagain
- Department of Biological Sciences, Plant Molecular and Bioinformatics Center, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115, USA; (S.D.); (N.S.); (B.S.C.)
| | - Jozef J. Bujarski
- Department of Biological Sciences, Plant Molecular and Bioinformatics Center, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115, USA; (S.D.); (N.S.); (B.S.C.)
| | - Yanbin Yin
- Department of Biological Sciences, Plant Molecular and Bioinformatics Center, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115, USA; (S.D.); (N.S.); (B.S.C.)
- Nebraska Food for Health Center, Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Nebraska—Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA
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3
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Hsu CW, Hsu HY, Chen CH, Chao M. Unbranched rod-like RNA is required for RNA editing of hepatitis delta virus genotype 2 and genotype 4. Virus Res 2023; 338:199239. [PMID: 37827303 PMCID: PMC10590747 DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2023.199239] [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: 08/01/2023] [Revised: 10/09/2023] [Accepted: 10/09/2023] [Indexed: 10/14/2023]
Abstract
RNA editing of the hepatitis delta virus (HDV) is essential for generating the large delta antigen, which is crucial for virion assembly. In HDV genotype 1 (HDV-1), editing occurs within the context of the unbranched rod-like structure characteristic of HDV RNA, while RNA editing in HDV-3 requires a branched double-hairpin structure. The regulation of RNA editing in HDV-2 and HDV-4 remains uncertain. Based on predictions of the unbranched rod-like RNA structures of HDV-2 and HDV-4, the editing site occurs as an A.C mismatch pair, surrounded by four base pairs upstream and two base pairs downstream of the editing site, respectively. To investigate HDV-2 and HDV-4 RNA editing, cultured cells were transfected with non-replicating editing reporters carrying wild-type sequences or specific mutations. The results revealed that the editing rates observed for wild-type HDV-2 and HDV-4 were fairly similar, albeit lower than that of HDV-1. Like HDV-1, both HDV-2 and HDV-4 showed a reduction in editing rate when the A.C mismatch pair and the immediately upstream base-paired region were disturbed. Notably, extending the downstream base-paired region from two to three or four (forming a structure identical to that of HDV-1) base pairs increased editing rate. Furthermore, we presented novel evidence that indicates the importance of the first bulge's size, located upstream of the editing site, and the base-pairing length within 7-13 and 28-39 nucleotides downstream of the editing site in influencing the HDV-4 editing rate. To summarize, our analyses suggest that the unbranched rod-like structures surrounding the editing site of HDV-2 and HDV-4 play a crucial role in regulating their RNA editing rates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chao-Wei Hsu
- Liver Research Center, Department of Hepato-Gastroenterology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan
| | - Hsueh-Ying Hsu
- Liver Research Center, Department of Hepato-Gastroenterology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan
| | - Chien-Hung Chen
- Division of Hepato-Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung 83301, Taiwan
| | - Mei Chao
- Liver Research Center, Department of Hepato-Gastroenterology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan; Department of Microbiology and Immunology and Division of Microbiology, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Chang Gung University, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan.
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4
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Lee GS, Purdy MA, Choi Y. Cell Culture Systems for Studying Hepatitis B and Hepatitis D Virus Infections. Life (Basel) 2023; 13:1527. [PMID: 37511902 PMCID: PMC10381383 DOI: 10.3390/life13071527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Revised: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
The hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis D virus (HDV) infections cause liver disease, including hepatitis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). HBV infection remains a major global health problem. In 2019, 296 million people were living with chronic hepatitis B and about 5% of them were co-infected with HDV. In vitro cell culture systems are instrumental in the development of therapeutic targets. Cell culture systems contribute to identifying molecular mechanisms for HBV and HDV propagation, finding drug targets for antiviral therapies, and testing antiviral agents. Current HBV therapeutics, such as nucleoside analogs, effectively suppress viral replication but are not curative. Additionally, no effective treatment for HDV infection is currently available. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop therapies to treat both viral infections. A robust in vitro cell culture system supporting HBV and HDV infections (HBV/HDV) is a critical prerequisite to studying HBV/HDV pathogenesis, the complete life cycle of HBV/HDV infections, and consequently identifying new therapeutics. However, the lack of an efficient cell culture system hampers the development of novel antiviral strategies for HBV/HDV infections. In vitro cell culture models have evolved with significant improvements over several decades. Recently, the development of the HepG2-NTCP sec+ cell line, expressing the sodium taurocholate co-transporting polypeptide receptor (NTCP) and self-assembling co-cultured primary human hepatocytes (SACC-PHHs) has opened new perspectives for a better understanding of HBV and HDV lifecycles and the development of specific antiviral drug targets against HBV/HDV infections. We address various cell culture systems along with different cell lines and how these cell culture systems can be used to provide better tools for HBV and HDV studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grace Sanghee Lee
- Division of Viral Hepatitis, National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA 30333, USA
| | - Michael A Purdy
- Division of Viral Hepatitis, National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA 30333, USA
| | - Youkyung Choi
- Division of Viral Hepatitis, National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA 30333, USA
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5
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Chrisman BS, Paskov K, Stockham N, Tabatabaei K, Jung JY, Washington P, Varma M, Sun MW, Maleki S, Wall DP. Indels in SARS-CoV-2 occur at template-switching hotspots. BioData Min 2021; 14:20. [PMID: 33743803 PMCID: PMC7980745 DOI: 10.1186/s13040-021-00251-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2020] [Accepted: 02/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
The evolutionary dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 have been carefully monitored since the COVID-19 pandemic began in December 2019. However, analysis has focused primarily on single nucleotide polymorphisms and largely ignored the role of insertions and deletions (indels) as well as recombination in SARS-CoV-2 evolution. Using sequences from the GISAID database, we catalogue over 100 insertions and deletions in the SARS-CoV-2 consensus sequences. We hypothesize that these indels are artifacts of recombination events between SARS-CoV-2 replicates whereby RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) re-associates with a homologous template at a different loci ("imperfect homologous recombination"). We provide several independent pieces of evidence that suggest this. (1) The indels from the GISAID consensus sequences are clustered at specific regions of the genome. (2) These regions are also enriched for 5' and 3' breakpoints in the transcription regulatory site (TRS) independent transcriptome, presumably sites of RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) template-switching. (3) Within raw reads, these indel hotspots have cases of both high intra-host heterogeneity and intra-host homogeneity, suggesting that these indels are both consequences of de novo recombination events within a host and artifacts of previous recombination. We briefly analyze the indels in the context of RNA secondary structure, noting that indels preferentially occur in "arms" and loop structures of the predicted folded RNA, suggesting that secondary structure may be a mechanism for TRS-independent template-switching in SARS-CoV-2 or other coronaviruses. These insights into the relationship between structural variation and recombination in SARS-CoV-2 can improve our reconstructions of the SARS-CoV-2 evolutionary history as well as our understanding of the process of RdRp template-switching in RNA viruses.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kelley Paskov
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, USA
| | - Nate Stockham
- Department of Neuroscience, Stanford University, Stanford, USA
| | - Kevin Tabatabaei
- Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
| | - Jae-Yoon Jung
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, USA
| | - Peter Washington
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, USA
| | - Maya Varma
- Department of Computer Science, Stanford University, Stanford, USA
| | - Min Woo Sun
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, USA
| | - Sepideh Maleki
- Department of Computer Science, University of Texas Austin, Austin, USA
| | - Dennis P Wall
- Department of Biomedical Data Science, Stanford University, Stanford, USA.
- Department of Pediatrics (Systems Medicine), Stanford University, Stanford, USA.
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6
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Hsu CW, Juang HH, Kuo CY, Li HP, Iang SB, Lin SH, Yeh CT, Chao M. Structural Pattern Differences in Unbranched Rod-like RNA of Hepatitis Delta Virus affect RNA Editing. Viruses 2019; 11:v11100934. [PMID: 31614652 PMCID: PMC6832723 DOI: 10.3390/v11100934] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2019] [Revised: 10/08/2019] [Accepted: 10/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis delta virus (HDV) RNA forms an unbranched rod-like structure and complexes with the delta antigen (HDAg). Host ADAR1-catalyzed RNA editing at the amber/W site of the small HDAg leads to the production of the large HDAg, which inhibits replication and is required for virion assembly. For HDV genotype 1, amber/W editing is controlled by HDAg and the RNA structure immediate vicinity and downstream of the editing site. Here, the effects of 20 mutants carrying an increased length of consecutive base-pairing at various sites in HDV RNA on amber/W site editing were examined. All nine mutants carrying genomic regions that formed up to 15 consecutive base pairs, which is also the maximum length observed in 41 naturally occurring HDV genomes, showed normal editing rate. However, mutants carrying a 16 or 17 consecutive base-paired antigenomic segment located as far as 114 nt upstream could increase editing efficiency, possibly by interfering with HDAg binding. These data show for the first time that extended base-pairing upstream of the amber/W site could increase HDV RNA editing efficiency. Furthermore, it appears that the naturally occurring HDV RNA structures have been selected for suboptimal amber/W RNA editing, which favors the HDV replication cycle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chao-Wei Hsu
- Liver Research Center, Department of Hepato-Gastroenterology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan; (C.-W.H.); (C.-T.Y.)
| | - Horng-Heng Juang
- Department of Anatomy, Chang Gung University, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan;
| | - Chien-Yi Kuo
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Chang Gung University, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan; (C.-Y.K.); (H.-P.L.); (S.-B.I.); (S.-H.L.)
| | - Hsin-Pai Li
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Chang Gung University, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan; (C.-Y.K.); (H.-P.L.); (S.-B.I.); (S.-H.L.)
- Division of Microbiology, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Chang Gung University, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan
| | - Shan-Bei Iang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Chang Gung University, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan; (C.-Y.K.); (H.-P.L.); (S.-B.I.); (S.-H.L.)
| | - Siao-Han Lin
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Chang Gung University, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan; (C.-Y.K.); (H.-P.L.); (S.-B.I.); (S.-H.L.)
| | - Chau-Ting Yeh
- Liver Research Center, Department of Hepato-Gastroenterology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan; (C.-W.H.); (C.-T.Y.)
| | - Mei Chao
- Liver Research Center, Department of Hepato-Gastroenterology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan; (C.-W.H.); (C.-T.Y.)
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Chang Gung University, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan; (C.-Y.K.); (H.-P.L.); (S.-B.I.); (S.-H.L.)
- Division of Microbiology, Graduate Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Chang Gung University, Guishan, Taoyang 33302, Taiwan
- Correspondence:
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7
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Miao Z, Zhang S, Ma Z, Hakim MS, Wang W, Peppelenbosch MP, Pan Q. Recombinant identification, molecular classification and proposed reference genomes for hepatitis delta virus. J Viral Hepat 2019; 26:183-190. [PMID: 30260538 PMCID: PMC7379554 DOI: 10.1111/jvh.13010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2018] [Accepted: 08/31/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Hepatitis delta virus (HDV), as a defective sub-virus that co-infects with hepatitis B virus, imposes an emerging global health burden. However, genetic characteristics and molecular classification of HDV remain under investigated. In this study, we have systematically retrieved and analysed a large set of HDV full-length genome sequences and identified novel recombinants. Based on phylogenetic and genetic analyses, we have established an updated classification system for HDV when recombinants were excluded. Furthermore, we have mapped the global distribution of different genotypes and subtypes. Finally, we have compiled a complete set of reference genomes for each subtype and proposed criteria for future identification of novel genotypes and subtypes. Of note, the global distribution map indicates that currently available HDV genetic data remain limited, and thus our proposed classification will likely evolve as future epidemiological data will accumulate. These results will facilitate the future research on the diagnosis, screening, epidemiology, evolution, prevention and clinical management of HDV infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhijiang Miao
- Biomedical Research CenterNorthwest Minzu UniversityLanzhouChina,Department of Gastroenterology and HepatologyErasmus MC‐University Medical CenterRotterdamthe Netherlands
| | - Shaoshi Zhang
- Biomedical Research CenterNorthwest Minzu UniversityLanzhouChina,Department of Gastroenterology and HepatologyErasmus MC‐University Medical CenterRotterdamthe Netherlands
| | - Zhongren Ma
- Biomedical Research CenterNorthwest Minzu UniversityLanzhouChina
| | - Mohamad S. Hakim
- Department of Gastroenterology and HepatologyErasmus MC‐University Medical CenterRotterdamthe Netherlands,Department of MicrobiologyFaculty of MedicineUniversitas Gadjah MadaYogyakartaIndonesia
| | - Wenshi Wang
- Department of Gastroenterology and HepatologyErasmus MC‐University Medical CenterRotterdamthe Netherlands
| | - Maikel P. Peppelenbosch
- Department of Gastroenterology and HepatologyErasmus MC‐University Medical CenterRotterdamthe Netherlands
| | - Qiuwei Pan
- Biomedical Research CenterNorthwest Minzu UniversityLanzhouChina,Department of Gastroenterology and HepatologyErasmus MC‐University Medical CenterRotterdamthe Netherlands
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8
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Colagrossi L, Salpini R, Scutari R, Carioti L, Battisti A, Piermatteo L, Bertoli A, Fabeni L, Minichini C, Trimoulet P, Fleury H, Nebuloso E, De Cristofaro M, Cappiello G, Spanò A, Malagnino V, Mari T, Barlattani A, Iapadre N, Lichtner M, Mastroianni C, Lenci I, Pasquazzi C, De Sanctis GM, Galeota Lanza A, Stanzione M, Stornaiuolo G, Marignani M, Sarmati L, Andreoni M, Angelico M, Ceccherini-Silberstein F, Perno CF, Coppola N, Svicher V. HDV Can Constrain HBV Genetic Evolution in HBsAg: Implications for the Identification of Innovative Pharmacological Targets. Viruses 2018; 10:v10070363. [PMID: 29987240 PMCID: PMC6071122 DOI: 10.3390/v10070363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2018] [Revised: 07/06/2018] [Accepted: 07/07/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic HBV + HDV infection is associated with greater risk of liver fibrosis, earlier hepatic decompensation, and liver cirrhosis hepatocellular carcinoma compared to HBV mono-infection. However, to-date no direct anti-HDV drugs are available in clinical practice. Here, we identified conserved and variable regions in HBsAg and HDAg domains in HBV + HDV infection, a critical finding for the design of innovative therapeutic agents. The extent of amino-acid variability was measured by Shannon-Entropy (Sn) in HBsAg genotype-d sequences from 31 HBV + HDV infected and 62 HBV mono-infected patients (comparable for demographics and virological-parameters), and in 47 HDAg genotype-1 sequences. Positions with Sn = 0 were defined as conserved. The percentage of conserved HBsAg-positions was significantly higher in HBV + HDV infection than HBV mono-infection (p = 0.001). Results were confirmed after stratification for HBeAg-status and patients’ age. A Sn = 0 at specific positions in the C-terminus HBsAg were correlated with higher HDV-RNA, suggesting that conservation of these positions can preserve HDV-fitness. Conversely, HDAg was characterized by a lower percentage of conserved-residues than HBsAg (p < 0.001), indicating higher functional plasticity. Furthermore, specific HDAg-mutations were significantly correlated with higher HDV-RNA, suggesting a role in conferring HDV replicative-advantage. Among HDAg-domains, only the virus-assembly signal exhibited a high genetic conservation (75% of conserved-residues). In conclusion, HDV can constrain HBsAg genetic evolution to preserve its fitness. The identification of conserved regions in HDAg poses the basis for designing innovative targets against HDV-infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luna Colagrossi
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Romina Salpini
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Rossana Scutari
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Luca Carioti
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Arianna Battisti
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Lorenzo Piermatteo
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Ada Bertoli
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Lavinia Fabeni
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Carmine Minichini
- Department of Mental Health and Public Medicine, Section of Infectious Diseases, University of Campania L. Vanvitelli, 81100 Naples, Italy.
| | - Pascale Trimoulet
- Laboratoire de Virologie, Hôpital Pellegrin tripode, 33076 Bordeaux, France.
| | - Hervé Fleury
- Laboratoire de Virologie, Hôpital Pellegrin tripode, 33076 Bordeaux, France.
| | - Elena Nebuloso
- Unit of Microbiology, Sandro Pertini Hospital, 00157 Rome, Italy.
| | | | | | - Alberto Spanò
- Unit of Microbiology, Sandro Pertini Hospital, 00157 Rome, Italy.
| | - Vincenzo Malagnino
- Infectious Diseases Unit, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Terenzio Mari
- Hepatology Unit, Nuovo Regina Margherita Hospital, 00153 Rome, Italy.
| | - Angelo Barlattani
- Hepatology Unit, Nuovo Regina Margherita Hospital, 00153 Rome, Italy.
| | - Nerio Iapadre
- Infectious Diseases Unit, San Salvatore Hospital, 67100 L'Aquila, Italy.
| | - Miriam Lichtner
- Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University, 00185 Rome, Italy.
| | - Claudio Mastroianni
- Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University, 00185 Rome, Italy.
| | - Ilaria Lenci
- Hepatology Unit, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | | | | | | | - Maria Stanzione
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Campania L. Vanvitelli, Viral Unit, 81100 Naples, Italy.
| | - Gianfranca Stornaiuolo
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Campania L. Vanvitelli, Viral Unit, 81100 Naples, Italy.
| | | | - Loredana Sarmati
- Infectious Diseases Unit, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Massimo Andreoni
- Infectious Diseases Unit, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | - Mario Angelico
- Hepatology Unit, Tor Vergata University Hospital, 00133 Rome, Italy.
| | | | - Carlo-Federico Perno
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
- Haematology and Oncohematology, University of Milan, 20122 Milan, Italy.
| | - Nicola Coppola
- Department of Mental Health and Public Medicine, Section of Infectious Diseases, University of Campania L. Vanvitelli, 81100 Naples, Italy.
| | - Valentina Svicher
- Department of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy.
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9
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Botelho-Souza LF, Vasconcelos MPA, Dos Santos ADO, Salcedo JMV, Vieira DS. Hepatitis delta: virological and clinical aspects. Virol J 2017; 14:177. [PMID: 28903779 PMCID: PMC5597996 DOI: 10.1186/s12985-017-0845-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2017] [Accepted: 09/05/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
There are an estimated 400 million chronic carriers of HBV worldwide; between 15 and 20 million have serological evidence of exposure to HDV. Traditionally, regions with high rates of endemicity are central and northern Africa, the Amazon Basin, eastern Europe and the Mediterranean, the Middle East and parts of Asia. There are two types of HDV/HBV infection which are differentiated by the previous status infection by HBV for the individual. Individuals with acute HBV infection contaminated by HDV is an HDV/HBV co-infection, while individuals with chronic HBV infection contaminated by HDV represent an HDV/HBV super-infection. The appropriate treatment for chronic hepatitis delta is still widely discussed since it does not have an effective drug. Alpha interferon is currently the only licensed therapy for the treatment of chronic hepatitis D. The most widely used drug is pegylated interferon but only approximately 25% of patients maintain a sustained viral response after 1 year of treatment. The best marker of therapeutic success would be the clearance of HBsAg, but this data is rare in clinical practice. Therefore, the best way to predict a sustained virologic response is the maintenance of undetectable HDV RNA levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luan Felipo Botelho-Souza
- Laboratório de Virologia Molecular - FIOCRUZ - RONDÔNIA, Rua da Beira, 7671 - BR 364, Km 3,5 Bairro Lagoa, CEP: 76812, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76812-329, Brazil.
- Ambulatório de Hepatites Virais, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Rondônia e Centro de Pesquisa em Medicina Tropical - CEPEM, Avenida Guaporé, 215, anexo Hospital CEMETRON, Agenor M de Carvalho, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76812-329, Brazil.
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Experimental - PGBioExp, Rodovia Br-364, KM 9, CAMPUS UNIR, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76801-974, Brazil.
| | | | - Alcione de Oliveira Dos Santos
- Laboratório de Virologia Molecular - FIOCRUZ - RONDÔNIA, Rua da Beira, 7671 - BR 364, Km 3,5 Bairro Lagoa, CEP: 76812, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76812-329, Brazil
- Ambulatório de Hepatites Virais, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Rondônia e Centro de Pesquisa em Medicina Tropical - CEPEM, Avenida Guaporé, 215, anexo Hospital CEMETRON, Agenor M de Carvalho, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76812-329, Brazil
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Experimental - PGBioExp, Rodovia Br-364, KM 9, CAMPUS UNIR, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76801-974, Brazil
| | - Juan Miguel Villalobos Salcedo
- Laboratório de Virologia Molecular - FIOCRUZ - RONDÔNIA, Rua da Beira, 7671 - BR 364, Km 3,5 Bairro Lagoa, CEP: 76812, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76812-329, Brazil
- Ambulatório de Hepatites Virais, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Rondônia e Centro de Pesquisa em Medicina Tropical - CEPEM, Avenida Guaporé, 215, anexo Hospital CEMETRON, Agenor M de Carvalho, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76812-329, Brazil
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Experimental - PGBioExp, Rodovia Br-364, KM 9, CAMPUS UNIR, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76801-974, Brazil
| | - Deusilene Souza Vieira
- Laboratório de Virologia Molecular - FIOCRUZ - RONDÔNIA, Rua da Beira, 7671 - BR 364, Km 3,5 Bairro Lagoa, CEP: 76812, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76812-329, Brazil
- Ambulatório de Hepatites Virais, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz Rondônia e Centro de Pesquisa em Medicina Tropical - CEPEM, Avenida Guaporé, 215, anexo Hospital CEMETRON, Agenor M de Carvalho, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76812-329, Brazil
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Experimental - PGBioExp, Rodovia Br-364, KM 9, CAMPUS UNIR, Porto Velho, RO, CEP: 76801-974, Brazil
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