TRANSMISSION OF A HOMOGENEOUS HEPATITIS-B VIRUS POPULATION OF A(1896)-CONTAINING STRAINS LEADING TO MILD RESOLVING ACUTE HEPATITIS AND SEROCONVERSION TO HEPATITIS-B E-ANTIGEN ANTIBODIES IN AN ADULT

The pre-core variant, A(1896), which snitches off hepatitis B e antige n (HBeAg) production, is common in hepatitis B e antigen antibody (ant i-HBe)-positive chronic hepatitis patients. It has been observed in oc casional case reports of acute hepatitis, However, transmission in the absence of HBeAg-producing strains, leading to acute nonfulminant hep atitis and clearance in adults, has not been reported. Here, we show t hat this event can occur, further confirming that A(1896) strains are ''wild-type'' and can lead to all the same outcomes as G(1896) strains . This is in keeping with phylogenetic evidence that A(1896) is transm itted independently on a large scale in the population and explains an ti-HBe- positive persons who have not had an HBeAg-positive phase docu mented.