Differences of HBV genotypes and hepatocellular carcinoma in Asian countries.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) genotype B (HBV B) and genotype C (HBV C) are prevalent in Asia. Recently HBV B has been classified into two subtypes, HBV Ba, which is ubiquitous in Asia, and HBV Bj specific to Japan. However, little is known about etiological, virological and clinical differences among patients who have various genotypes and who developed hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We investigated the relation of HBV subgenotype with etiological and clinical differences of HCC patients between Taiwan and Okinawa in Japan. HBV Bj may be associated with lower incidence of HCC and older development of HCC while HBV Ba or HBV C may be associated withhigher incidence of HCC and younger development of HCC. In addition, we demonstrated the relationship of the specific mutation of HBV, T1653 mutation in the core promoter region, with development of HCC in Japanese patients with HBV C. These data suggest that great differences exist among patients with HCC who are infected with different HBV genotypes or genotype-specific mutations.