Association of core promoter mutations of hepatitis B virus and viral load is different in HBeAg(+) and HBeAg(-) patients

Table 4 Precore and core promoter mutations in patients with hepatitis B e antigen (+), before and after hepatitis B e antigen seroconversion n (%)

	All	Group 1	Group 2	Group 3	Group 2+3	P-value
		HBeAg(+), HBeAb(-)	HBeAg(-), HBeAb(+)	HBeAg(-), HBeAb(-)	HBeAg(-)	1 vs 2	1 vs 3	2 vs 3	1 vs (2+3)
T1762/A17641
Absent	90 (50.3)	42 (59.2)	38 (44.2)	10 (45.5)	48 (44.4)	0.062	0.258	0.915	0.054
Present	89 (49.7)	29 (40.8)	48 (55.8)	12 (54.5)	60 (55.6)
A18962
Absent	65 (61.3)	48 (100.0)3	15 (34.9)	2 (13.3)	17 (29.3)	< 0.001	< 0.001	0.114	< 0.001
Present	41 (38.7)	0 (0.0)	28 (65.1)	13 (87.7)	41 (70.7)
A18992
Absent	81 (76.4)	43 (89.6)	27 (62.8)	11 (73.3)	38 (65.5)	0.003	0.034	0.116	0.004
Present	25 (23.6)	5 (10.4)	16 (37.2)	4 (26.7)	20 (34.5)
T1762/A1764 and A18962
Absent	88 (83.0)	48 (100.0)	31 (72.1)	9 (60.0)	40 (68.9)	< 0.001	< 0.001	0.383	< 0.001
Present	18 (17.0)	0 (0.0)	12 (27.9)	6 (40.0)	18 (31.0)
T1762/A1764 or A18962
Absent	33 (31.1)	31 (64.6)	2 (4.7)	0 (0.0)	2 (1.9)4	< 0.001	< 0.001	0.395	< 0.001
Present	73 (68.9)	17 (35.4)	41 (95.3)	15 (100.0)	56 (98.1)

¹Total samples n = 179; Hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) (+) and hepatitis B e antibody (HBeAb) (-) n = 71; HBeAg(-) and HBeAb(+), n = 86; HBeAg(-) and HBeAb(-), n = 22;

²Total samples n = 106; HBeAg(+) and HBeAb(-) n = 48; HBeAg(-) and HBeAb(+), n = 43; HBeAg(-) and HBeAb(-), n = 15;

³Three samples had a mixed population of precore stop codon mutation (A1896) and its wild type (G1896);

⁴Two samples with a mixed population of basal core promoter mutation (T1762/A1764) and its wild type (A1762/G1764).