Advances in drugs and biotechnology targeting hepatitis B virus cccDNA / 临床肝胆病杂志

ABSTRACT

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is the main cause of chronic hepatitis B (CHB), liver cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. HBV covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA) is the template for HBV replication and exists stably in hepatocytes, which is the main factor for persistent infection. However, existing antiviral drugs including nucleos(t)ide analogues and interferons do not directly target cccDNA, and thus it is difficult to achieve the clinical cure of CHB. With the progress in biotechnology and in-depth understanding of the features of HBV cccDNA, more and more studies have been conducted on antiviral therapies targeting cccDNA, but there is still a long way before clinical application. This article briefly reviews related research advances.