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Kinetics of acute hepatitis B virus infection in humans

Whalley, S.A.; Murray, J.M.; Brown, D.; Webster, G.J.M.; Emery, V.C.; Dusheiko, G.M.; Perelson, A.S.; (2001) Kinetics of acute hepatitis B virus infection in humans. Journal of Experimental Medicine , 193 (7) pp. 847-854. 10.1084/jem.193.7.847. Green open access

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Abstract

Using patient data from a unique single source outbreak of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, we have characterized the kinetics of acute HBV infection by monitoring viral turnover in the serum during the late incubation and clinical phases of the disease in humans. HBV replicates rapidly with minimally estimated doubling times ranging between 2.2 and 5.8 d (mean 3.7 ± 1.5 d). After a peak viral load in serum of nearly 1010 HBV DNA copies/ml is attained, clearance of HBV DNA follows a two or three phase decay pattern with an initial rapid decline characterized by mean half-life (t1/2) of 3.7 ± 1.2 d, similar to the t1/2 observed in the noncytolytic clearance of covalently closed circular DNA for other hepadnaviruses. The final phase of virion clearance occurs at a variable rate (t1/2 of 4.8 to 284 d) and may relate to the rate of loss of infected hepatocytes. Free virus has a mean t1/2 of at most 1.2 ± 0.6 d. We estimate a peak HBV production rate of at least 1013 virions/day and a maximum production rate of an infected hepatocyte of 200–1,000 virions/day, on average. At this peak rate of virion production we estimate that every possible single and most double mutations would be created each day.

Type: Article
Title: Kinetics of acute hepatitis B virus infection in humans
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1084/jem.193.7.847
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1084/jem.193.7.847
Language: English
Additional information: Published by Rockefeller University Press
Keywords: Acute hepatitis B, kinetics, cytotoxic T lymphocytes, mutation, hepatocyte
UCL classification: UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Medicine > Nephrology
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Medicine > Nephrology
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/8008
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