Reversion of naturally occurring high-level resistance mutations to NS3 protease inhibitors in two treatment-naive individuals infected with hepatitis C virus.

摘要

HIV-infected patients could profoundly benefit from the use of the new anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) direct-acting antivir-als, the NS3 protease inhibitors (Pis), because their chance of reaching a sustained virological response is dramatically less than in HCV-monoinfected persons. The prevalence of natural resistance within the NS3 protease domain of HCV in HIV-infected individuals is estimated to be 7.9%-16%. Currently only a few studies have evaluated the stability of HCV resistance mutations in vivo in the absence of drugs. In the present study we investigated the dynamics of naturally occurring strains of HCV resistant to NS3 Pis in two HIV/ HCV-coinfected patients.The two patients were recruited for virological and immunological studies of HIV/HCV infection in March 2000. The study conformed to the ethical guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki and the subjects gave written informed consent. Some of the data were generated as part of the routine laboratory and clinical work performed for standard care of outpatients.