Source: Office of Medical Science
Written by: Zhao Qiang
Edited by: Wang Dongmei

Chronic hepatitis B affects approximately 240 million people worldwide and is responsible for about 780,000 deaths annually (http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs204/en/). China is one of the countries most affected by it. Cellular entry is one of the most restrictive steps for hepatitis B virus to infect their target organs. This step is also one of the prime targets for drug development. However, the search for cell-surface receptors that facilitate the entry of hepatitis B virus has been a long, unfruitful process in the past 50 years. By in vitro studies, Prof. Li Wenhui’s group at the Beijing Institute of Life Science has shown that sodium/bile acid cotransporter (sodium-dependent taurocholate cotransporting peptide, NTCP) is a strong candidate for the cellular receptor for HBV, and its satellite virus hepatitis D virus (HDV).

Prof. Wang Yiming and Prof. Gao Zhiliang’s groups at Sun Yat-sen University, by studying hepatitis B patients, have confirmed that the NTCP is a receptor for hepatitis B virus in human infection. They further showed that the genetic variant of the gene confers resistance to chronic hepatitis B and its related liver failure. This variant p.Ser267Phe of the NTCP　gene SLC10A is commonly present at the Southern Chinese population. It prevented ~ 13% chronic hepatitis B patients. This significant discovery by the Chinese scientists, including scientists at Sun Yat-sen University, not only solved the scientific riddle for the receptor which puzzled scientific community during the past 50 years, but also provides one of the most important targets for drug development. It is a significant step forward towards the eradication of hepatitis B and hepatitis D viruses infection.

Scientists at the BGI (Wang Jun), The University of Hong Kong (Pak Sham), Chinese Academy of Sciences (Liu Jinsong, Xu Shuhua) also contributed to the study. The paper has been published in Hepatology with the co-first authors Peng Liang, Zhao Qiang and Li Qibin.