Hepatitis C virus diversity and evolution in the full open-reading frame during antiviral therapy.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Pegylated interferon plus ribavirin therapy for hepatitis C virus (HCV) fails in approximately half of genotype 1 patients. Treatment failure occurs either by nonresponse (minimal declines in viral titer) or relapse (robust initial responses followed by rebounds of viral titers during or after therapy). HCV is highly variable genetically. To determine if viral genetic differences contribute to the difference between response and relapse, we examined the inter-patient genetic diversity and mutation pattern in the full open reading frame HCV genotype 1a consensus sequences.

Methodology/principal findings

Pre- and post-therapy sequences were analyzed for 10 nonresponders and 10 relapsers from the Virahep-C clinical study. Pre-therapy interpatient diversity among the

SUBMITTER: Cannon NA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2373758 | biostudies-literature | 2008 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature