FIG. 2.

Antiviral effect of oral TDF administration on serum WHV DNA and WHsAg, intrahepatic WHV replication and WHV RNA, and hepatic expression of WHcAg and of membranous and cytoplasmic WHsAg in individual chronic WHV carrier woodchucks. Woodchuck F5905 received TDF at a dose of 5.0 mg/kg/day for 4 weeks (left panels), whereas woodchuck F5865 was treated for 4 weeks with 15.0 mg/kg/day of TDF (right panels). Horizontal bars in the top panels denote the 4-week treatment period. Log₁₀ changes in WHV viremia and WHsAg antigenemia from baseline at week zero prior to TDF administration are shown in the top panels. WHVge, WHV genomic equivalents (virion or WHV DNA-containing virus particles); ODU, optical density units; WHV RI, hepatic WHV DNA replicative intermediates; WHsAg (mem), hepatic membranous WHsAg; WHsAg (cyt), hepatic cytoplasmic WHsAg. Levels of hepatic cellular DNA and RNA were quantified by hybridization to a commercial β-actin gene probe (Oncor, Inc., Gaithersburg, MD) by Southern or Northern blot hybridization techniques, respectively.