Murashima S, Sata M, Suzuki H, Noguchi S, Tanikawa K
Second Department of Medicine, Kurume University School of Medicine, Fukuoka, Japan.
Microbiol Immunol. 1996;40(12):941-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1348-0421.1996.tb01163.x.
The clinical significance of the hypervariable region (HVR) in the N-terminus of the E2/NS1 region, which encodes the putative envelope glycoprotein (gp 70) of HCV, has not yet been elucidated. We studied the relation between HVR changes and elevation of the alanine aminotransaminase (ALT) level due to liver cell injury as well as the persistence of HCV infection. Three patients (carrier group) who were HCV RNA positive and had normal ALT levels for as long as five years and three patients with high ALT levels were studied. None of the six patients had a history of treatment. HCV RNA was extracted from serum obtained from each patient in 1990 and 1995. The E2/NS1 region, including HVR-1 and HVR-2, was amplified using the RT-PCR method. PCR products were cloned and nucleotide sequences were determined using the dideoxynucleotide chain termination method. No clear correlation was found between the ALT levels and the number of nucleotide substitutions in HVR-1. The number of nucleotide substitutions in HVR-1 during the five years was greater than in other regions. Furthermore, more nucleotide substitutions occurred in the 1st and 2nd codon positions of HVR-1 than in the control region, even in the carrier group. In conclusion, HVR-1 changes are probably a more important factor in persistent viral infection than liver cell injury.
编码丙型肝炎病毒假定包膜糖蛋白（gp 70）的E2/NS1区域N端高变区（HVR）的临床意义尚未阐明。我们研究了HVR变化与因肝细胞损伤导致的丙氨酸转氨酶（ALT）水平升高以及丙型肝炎病毒感染持续存在之间的关系。研究了3例丙型肝炎病毒RNA阳性且ALT水平正常长达5年的患者（携带者组）和3例ALT水平高的患者。这6例患者均无治疗史。1990年和1995年从每位患者的血清中提取丙型肝炎病毒RNA。使用逆转录聚合酶链反应（RT-PCR）方法扩增包括HVR-1和HVR-2的E2/NS1区域。将PCR产物克隆，并使用双脱氧核苷酸链终止法测定核苷酸序列。未发现ALT水平与HVR-1中核苷酸取代数量之间存在明显相关性。5年期间HVR-1中的核苷酸取代数量多于其他区域。此外，即使在携带者组中，HVR-1的第1和第2密码子位置发生的核苷酸取代也比对照区域更多。总之，HVR-1变化可能是病毒持续感染比肝细胞损伤更重要的因素。
