Hepatitis B virus replication process (HBV replication) (HBV replication)

The Hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication process is a complex multi-step cycle essential for the persistence and pathogenesis of the virus in hepatocytes. The process begins with viral entry via the sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide (NTCP) receptor, followed by the delivery of the viral genome to the nucleus where it is converted into covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA) (Source: NIH, PubMed). This cccDNA serves as a stable episomal template for the transcription of all viral messenger RNAs and the pregenomic RNA (pgRNA). The pgRNA is subsequently encapsidated and reverse-transcribed by the viral polymerase into new relaxed circular DNA (rcDNA) genomes (Source: UniProt). Therapeutic strategies target various stages of this cycle, most notably using nucleos(t)ide analogs to inhibit the reverse transcription step (Source: StatPearls). Modern drug development also focuses on capsid assembly modulators, entry inhibitors, and RNA interference to achieve a functional cure by reducing viral load and surface antigen levels (Source: Journal of Hepatology).

Other names

HBV life cycleHepatitis B virus replication cycleHBV replication pathway

Inhibition of viral DNA polymerase/reverse transcriptase, inhibition of viral entry via NTCP, modulation of capsid assembly, and degradation of viral RNA.