Mutations of pre-core and basal core promoter before and after hepatitis B e antigen seroconversion

Figure 1 Comparison of changes in pre-core (A) and basal core promoter (B) mutation type among 3 groups of patients classified according to hepatitis B e antigen /anti-hepatitis B e positive status. A: A significant difference was seen in patients with hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) seroconversion (P = 0.022). One patient whose pre-core (pre-C) mutation was undetermined at the start of follow-up was wild type at the end point; B: Of the 3 patients whose basal core promoter (BCP) mutation was undetermined at the start of follow-up, 2 were wild type and 1 was undetermined at the end point. HBeAg: Hepatitis B e antigen.

Figure 2 Comparison of serum hepatitis B virus DNA, hepatitis B surface antigen, and hepatitis core-related antigen levels among patients with wild (-/-) and mutant types of the pre-core and basal core promoter mutations. Fifty-seven of 61 samples obtained from HBeAg positive cases and 86 of 111 samples obtained from anti-HBeAg positive cases were eligible for analysis. HBV: Hepatitis B virus; HBeAg: Hepatitis B e antigen; HBsAg: Hepatitis B surface antigen; HBcrAg: Hepatitis core-related antigen; pre-C: Pre-core; BCP: Basal core promoter.