Subcellular localizaton of
HBcAg have been found to be related to the activity of
liver disease and HBV replication. The aim of this study was to determine whether the degree of expression of
HBcAg in the hepatocyte nucleus and cytoplasm reflects the level of viral replication and histological activity in chronic HBV
infection. A total of 102 patients with biopsy proven
chronic hepatitis B were included. There was a highly significant correlation between the levels of HBV
DNA in serum and the degree of expression of
HBcAg in the nucleus for
HBeAg-positive(p=0.000) and negative patients(p=0.04). There was a highly significant, correlation between the degrees of expression of
HBcAg in hepatocyte cytoplasm and histologic activities (p<0.01) for
HBeAg-positive patients. The degrees of expression of
HBcAg in the hepatocyte cytoplasm correlated positively with the lobular activities (p<0.01), but not correlated with the portal activity and
fibrosis for
HBeAg-negative patients. In conclusion, in the young patients with chronic B viral
hepatitis, the degree of expression of
HBcAg in the hepatocyte nucleus may affect viral load, and the degree of expression of
HBcAg in the hepatocyte cytoplasm may affect histologic activities of
liver disease.