Quantitative detection of the M204V hepatitis B virus minor variants by amplification refractory mutation system real-time PCR combined with molecular beacon technology.

ABSTRACT: Mutations in the highly conserved tyrosine-methionine-aspartate-aspartate (YMDD) motif are frequently associated with resistance to antivirals and represent a major concern in the treatment of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Conventional methods fail to detect minority populations of drug-resistant viral quasispecies if they represent less than 25% of the total sample virus population. The amplification refractory mutation system real-time PCR (ARMS RT-PCR) was combined with molecular beacon technology using the LightCycler system. The samples from HBV patients selected for assay evaluation included (i) 57 samples from treatment-naïve patients for biological discriminatory ability (cutoff) estimation, (ii) 12 samples from patients with treatment failure that were M204V positive by seque

SUBMITTER: Ntziora F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2725693 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature