For cirrhotic patients after elimination of HCV, serum EOT-AFP level and previous HCC characteristics would be useful markers for predicting de novo HCC or recurrence.

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In a GWAS, we identified the association between the SNP rs17047200, within the intron of TLL1, and development of HCC in patients who achieved an SVR to treatment for chronic HCV infection. We found levels of Tll1/TLL1 mRNA to be increased in rodent models of liver injury and liver tissues of patients with fibrosis, compared with controls. We propose that this SNP might affect splicing of TLL1 mRNA, yielding short variants with high catalytic activity that accelerates hepatic fibrogenesis and carcinogenesis. Further studies are needed to determine how rs17047200 affects TLL1 mRNA levels, splicing, and translation, as well as the prevalence of this variant among other patients with HCC. Tests for the TLL1 SNP might be used to identify patients at risk for HCC after an SVR to treatment of HCV infection.

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Background and aimsTenofovir alafenamide (TAF) has been newly approved for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B (CHB). We aimed to assess the effectiveness and renal safety of switching from entecavir (ETV) or nucleos(t)ide analogue (NA) combination therapy to TAF.MethodsThis multicentre, retrospective, cohort study included 313 consecutive CHB patients who switched to TAF monotherapy after treatment with ETV or a nucleos(t)ide analogue (NA) combination for over 2 years. Virological/laboratory responses were evaluated for 48 weeks after switchover. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) was defined as an estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) <60 mL/min/1.73 m2. Differences in longitudinal parameters were compared by the generalized estimating equation method.ResultsIn the prior ETV group (n = 191), the HBV DNA suppression rate at week 48 was significantly increased, from 75.9% to 96.9% (P < .001). Additionally, mean changes in the HBsAg level at week 48 in HBsAg ≥ 3.0 logIU/mL and < 3.0 logIU/mL groups were −0.09 and −0.13 logIU/mL respectively. In the prior NA combination group (n = 122), the mean changes in HBsAg level at week 48 in the HBsAg ≥ 3.0 logIU/mL and <3.0 logIU/mL groups were −0.08 and −0.11 logIU/mL respectively. For patients with CKD, the eGFR at week 48 was significantly improved compared to those with non‐CKD (adjusted slope coefficient difference: 2.75 mL/min/1.73 m2/48 weeks; P = .001).ConclusionsSwitching from ETV or an NA combination to TAF was effective for HBV suppression and continued HBsAg reduction. Moreover, the renal glomerular function of patients in the prior NA combination group with CKD was significantly improved compared to those with non‐CKD.LAY SUMMARYNucleos(t)ide analogues, such as entecavir, tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and tenofovir alafenamide, inhibit hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication and are recommended as first‐line oral agents for chronic HBV infection. We evaluated the virological/biochemical effects and renal safety when patients are switched from entecavir or nucleoside‐nucleotide analogue combination therapy to tenofovir alafenamide. Our findings suggest that switching to tenofovir alafenamide was effective for HBV suppression and the improvement in renal function for patients with chronic kidney disease.

Several host genes control retroviral replication and pathogenesis through the regulation of immune responses to viral antigens. The Rfv3 gene influences the persistence of viremia and production of virusneutralizing antibodies in mice infected with Friend mouse retrovirus complex (FV). This locus has been mapped within a narrow segment of mouse chromosome 15 harboring the APOBEC3 and BAFF-R loci, both of which show functional polymorphisms among different strains of mice. The exon 5-lacking product of the APOBEC3 allele expressed in FV-resistant C57BL/6 (B6) mice directly restricts viral replication, and mice lacking the B6-derived APOBEC3 exhibit exaggerated pathology and reduced production of neutralizing antibodies. However, the mechanisms by which the polymorphisms at the APOBEC3 locus affect the production of neutralizing antibodies remain unclear. Here we show that the APOBEC3 genotypes do not directly affect the B-cell repertoire, and mice lacking B6-derived APOBEC3 still produce FV-neutralizing antibodies in the presence of primed T helper cells. Instead, higher viral loads at a very early stage of FV infection caused by either a lack of the B6-derived APOBEC3 or a lack of the wild-type BAFF-R resulted in slower production of neutralizing antibodies. Indeed, B cells were hyperactivated soon after infection in the APOBEC3-or BAFF-R-deficient mice. In contrast to mice deficient in the B6-derived APOBEC3, which cleared viremia by 4 weeks after FV infection, mice lacking the functional BAFF-R allele exhibited sustained viremia, indicating that the polymorphisms at the BAFF-R locus may better explain the Rfv3-defining phenotype of persistent viremia.Several host genetic factors control retroviral replication and pathogenesis through the regulation of immune responses to viral antigens. The recovery from Friend virus 3 gene (Rfv3) was identified as a host gene locus that affects the persistence of viremia and development of virus-specific antibody (Ab) responses upon Friend virus (FV) infection (5). FV is the pathogenic retrovirus complex composed of replication-competent Friend murine leukemia virus (F-MuLV) and the defective spleen focus-forming virus (SFFV). The product of the SFFV env gene, gp55, forms a complex with the erythropoietin receptor and the short form of the hematopoietic-cell-specific receptor tyrosine kinase (STK), and this interaction induces the growth and terminal differentiation of erythroid progenitor cells, causing increased hematocrit values and massive splenomegaly. The resultant increase in targets of FV integration consequently causes the emergence of mono-or oligoclonal erythroleukemia through insertional activation of transcription factors or disruption of a tumor suppressor gene (15,29,34). Mice of the C57BL background possess mutations in the intron of the Stk gene and lack expression of the short-form STK, resulting in resistance to SFFV-induced splenomegaly (37).This host factor was first described as polymorphisms at the Fv2 locus, with the resistance allele found in C57BL m...

Careful administration is necessary in patients > or =60 years old, in female patients, and in patients receiving a ribavirin dose of 12 mg/kg or more. Patients who experience a fall in hemoglobin concentrations of 2 g/dL or more at week 2 after the start of treatment should be monitored with particular care.

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