862, the field of qHBsAg research has been active. Specifically, qHBsAg has shown to be correlated with intrahepatic covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA),6, 7 and subsequent studies have lent further support to a correlation between qHBsAg and serum HBV DNA levels.8, 9 To date, the potential role of qHBsAg in antiviral therapy monitoring has been studied largely in patients receiving pegylated interferon (PEG-IFN).10-12 Moucari et al.13 reported that an early drop in qHBsAg was highly predictive of a sustained

virological response (SVR) in HBeAg(−) patients. This was similar to the results obtained by Brunetto et al.,14 who found that an on-treatment decline of qHBsAg was significantly associated with sustained HBsAg clearance. In selleck compound contrast to studies of PEG-IFN, there is a relative paucity of data concerning qHBsAg levels in patients receiving oral nucleos(t)ide analogues. The effects of adefovir and lamivudine (LAM) on qHBsAg have been analyzed in several studies; the potency of these agents in decreasing qHBsAg levels was low.4, 6, 9 Among patients taking entecavir (ETV), which is a potent and

preferred first-line agent, little is known about qHBsAg; in two studies, the clinical utility of qHBsAg was not demonstrated.15, 16 The quantitative MDX-1106 hepatitis B e antigen (qHBeAg) titer has been introduced and evaluated as a surrogate marker of on-treatment response. In patients receiving conventional interferon, PEG-IFN, or LAM, a decrease in qHBeAg levels during antiviral therapy might have predictive value in determining find more the clinical course and the occurrence of viral breakthrough.17-21 However, no study exploring qHBeAg changes in patients receiving ETV

therapy has yet been conducted. Recent investigations of qHBsAg have suggested its potential for wider applications encompassing the natural course of HBV.22, 23 These studies have demonstrated significant differences in qHBsAg across the different phases of HBV infection over a long time period. Moreover, Thompson et al.24 reported differences in the correlations between qHBsAg and HBV DNA in HBeAg(+) patients and HBeAg(−) patients in conjunction with qHBeAg. Their results have provided new insights into viral pathogenesis. However, temporal data describing in detail the correlation between qHBsAg/qHBeAg and HBV DNA in patients treated with antivirals have yet to be published. In this study, we systematically analyzed the profiles of serial qHBsAg as well as qHBeAg in patients receiving ETV, and we investigated the clinical utility of these quantitative serological markers. Here we provide additional temporal information on the correlation between qHBsAg and HBV DNA as part of a broader attempt to elucidate their dynamic relationship during antiviral therapy.