Duck hepatitis B virus and liver diseases.

The presence of duck hepatitis B virus in serum was studied in 61 ducks (24 from Chi-tung county, China, 20 from Changchun, China, and 17 from Chiba, Japan) with relation to liver disease. None of the 37 ducks from Chiba and Changchun was positive for duck hepatitis B virus as assayed by electron microscopy, endogenous deoxyribonucleic acid-polymerase activity, and hybridization with duck hepatitis B virus deoxyribonucleic acid. No liver disease was seen in these ducks. In contrast, viruslike particles were present in the serum of 12 of 24 (50%) ducks from Chi-tung, China. The presence of duck hepatitis B virus in serum was indicated by the hybridization spot test and deoxyribonucleic acid-polymerase activities. A variety of liver diseases including chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis were seen in the livers of a majority of the ducks from Chi-tung. One duck hepatitis B virus-positive duck had multicentric hepatocellular carcinoma with underlying cirrhosis. Comparison of serum duck hepatitis B virus markers and liver disease in the affected flock revealed a tendency for seronegative ducks to have advanced liver diseases. Duck hepatitis B virus infection may be used as an experimental model to test various hypotheses concerning the pathogenesis of hepatitis B virus-associated liver disease in humans.