Dataset Information

Mutation in the Hepatitis E Virus Polymerase and Outcome of Ribavirin Therapy.

ABSTRACT: Hepatitis E virus (HEV) can lead to chronic infection in solid-organ transplant patients. Ribavirin is efficient for treatment of chronically infected patients. Recently, the1634R mutation in the HEV polymerase has been associated with treatment failure. However, it is unclear if this mutation can be used as a prognostic marker of treatment outcome. We studied the prevalence of the 1634R mutation in the HEV polymerase of patients starting ribavirin therapy, the influence of the 1634R variants on the viral response, the frequency of the 1634R mutation in patients whose treatment failed, and its impact on ribavirin retreatment. We analyzed pretreatment samples from 63 solid-organ transplant patients with chronic hepatitis E using deep sequencing; 42 patients had a sustained virologic response (SVR), and 21 were non-SVR patients. We detected the 1634R variant by deep sequencing in 36.5% (23/63) of the patients (proportions, 1.3 to 100%). The 1634R variant was detected in 31.0% (13/42) of baseline plasma samples from patients with SVR and in 47.6% (10/21) in the other patients (P = 0.2). The presence of this mutation did not influence the initial decrease in viral RNA. Lastly, a second prolonged ribavirin treatment led to SVR in 70% of the patients who initially did not have SVR, despite the presence of the 1634R variant. We conclude that the presence of the 1634R variant at ribavirin initiation does not lead to absolute ribavirin resistance. Although its proportion increased in patients whose treatment failed, the presence of the 1634R variant did not compromise the response to a second ribavirin treatment.

SUBMITTER: Lhomme S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4775994 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Mutation in the Hepatitis E Virus Polymerase and Outcome of Ribavirin Therapy.

Lhomme Sebastien S Kamar Nassim N Nicot Florence F Ducos Jacques J Bismuth Michael M Garrigue Valerie V Petitjean-Lecherbonnier Joelle J Ollivier Isabelle I Alessandri-Gradt Elodie E Goria Odile O Barth Heidi H Perrin Peggy P Saune Karine K Dubois Martine M Carcenac Romain R Lefebvre Caroline C Jeanne Nicolas N Abravanel Florence F Izopet Jacques J

Antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy 20151228 3

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) can lead to chronic infection in solid-organ transplant patients. Ribavirin is efficient for treatment of chronically infected patients. Recently, the1634R mutation in the HEV polymerase has been associated with treatment failure. However, it is unclear if this mutation can be used as a prognostic marker of treatment outcome. We studied the prevalence of the 1634R mutation in the HEV polymerase of patients starting ribavirin therapy, the influence of the 1634R variants on ...[more]

PMID: 26711757

Similar Datasets

Project description:The current standard of care for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection - combination therapy with pegylated interferon and ribavirin - elicits sustained responses in only ?50% of the patients treated. No alternatives exist for patients who do not respond to combination therapy. Addition of ribavirin substantially improves response rates to interferon and lowers relapse rates following the cessation of therapy, suggesting that increasing ribavirin exposure may further improve treatment response. A key limitation, however, is the toxic side-effect of ribavirin, hemolytic anemia, which often necessitates a reduction of ribavirin dosage and compromises treatment response. Maximizing treatment response thus requires striking a balance between the antiviral and hemolytic activities of ribavirin. Current models of viral kinetics describe the enhancement of treatment response due to ribavirin. Ribavirin-induced anemia, however, remains poorly understood and precludes rational optimization of combination therapy. Here, we develop a new mathematical model of the population dynamics of erythrocytes that quantitatively describes ribavirin-induced anemia in HCV patients. Based on the assumption that ribavirin accumulation decreases erythrocyte lifespan in a dose-dependent manner, model predictions capture several independent experimental observations of the accumulation of ribavirin in erythrocytes and the resulting decline of hemoglobin in HCV patients undergoing combination therapy, estimate the reduced erythrocyte lifespan during therapy, and describe inter-patient variations in the severity of ribavirin-induced anemia. Further, model predictions estimate the threshold ribavirin exposure beyond which anemia becomes intolerable and suggest guidelines for the usage of growth hormones, such as erythropoietin, that stimulate erythrocyte production and avert the reduction of ribavirin dosage, thereby improving treatment response. Our model thus facilitates, in conjunction with models of viral kinetics, the rational identification of treatment protocols that maximize treatment response while curtailing side effects.

Dataset Information

Mutation in the Hepatitis E Virus Polymerase and Outcome of Ribavirin Therapy.

Publications

Mutation in the Hepatitis E Virus Polymerase and Outcome of Ribavirin Therapy.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets