Gerin J L
Department of Microbiology, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Rockville, MD 20852.
Gastroenterol Jpn. 1990 Sep;25 Suppl 2:38-42. doi: 10.1007/BF02779926.
Woodchuck hepatitis virus (WHV), a member of the Hepadnaviridae, is closely related to HBV in its virus structure, genetic organization and mechanism of replication. Natural infection of woodchucks is associated with chronic liver disease and primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A concerted effort to develop the woodchuck as an experimental animal model of hepadnavirus-induced disease was initiated in 1980. The experimental studies have established the following: (1) Chronic WHV carriage as an outcome of infection is a function of age of exposure, virus dose and, possibly, virus strain. As in humans, animals infected as newborns develop chronic antigenemia at high rates compared to young adults. (2) WHV causes primary hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in woodchucks. Hundred percent of experimentally-induced chronic WHsAg carriers developed HCC within three years; no HCC has occurred in concurrent uninfected control animals born and held in the same laboratory environment. The predictable course of experimental WHV infection leading to liver disease in woodchucks makes this an ideal model in which to study the natural history of hepadnavirus and to develop effective prophylactic and therapeutic strategies.
土拨鼠肝炎病毒（WHV）是嗜肝DNA病毒科的一员，在病毒结构、基因组织和复制机制方面与乙肝病毒（HBV）密切相关。土拨鼠的自然感染与慢性肝病和原发性肝细胞癌（HCC）有关。1980年开始共同努力将土拨鼠开发成嗜肝DNA病毒诱导疾病的实验动物模型。实验研究已证实以下几点：（1）作为感染结果的慢性WHV携带情况取决于暴露年龄、病毒剂量，可能还与病毒株有关。与人类一样，与年轻成年动物相比，新生时感染的动物发生慢性抗原血症的比例更高。（2）WHV可导致土拨鼠发生原发性肝细胞癌（HCC）。100%经实验诱导的慢性WHsAg携带者在三年内发生了HCC；在同一实验室环境中出生并饲养的同期未感染对照动物未发生HCC。土拨鼠实验性WHV感染导致肝脏疾病的可预测病程使其成为研究嗜肝DNA病毒自然史以及制定有效预防和治疗策略的理想模型。
