Researchers Uncover Low-Frequency Hepatitis B Drug-Resistant Mutations Using 454 Sequencing Systems

A study published online last week in the Journal of Infectious Disease reports that ultra-deep sequencing has the ability to identify low-frequency hepatitis B virus (HBV) drug-resistant mutations in infected samples, including mutations undetected by standard direct PCR sequencing methods (1). The paper outlines the results of a collaborative study between Stanford University and 454 Life Sciences, a Roche Company, that used 454 Sequencing systems to examine blood samples from nucleoside and nucleotide reverse-transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) treated and untreated individuals. The study provides new insights into the dynamics of early stage NRTI resistance in HBV as current methods limit...

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