FIG 2.

In vitro drug susceptibility assay of HBV RT mutants derived from a patient during combination therapy. (A and B) Cloned HBV DNAs obtained during LMV and ADV combination therapy were transfected into Huh7 cells, and cells were treated for 4 days with 20 μM LMV, ADV, or both drugs. The intracellular HBV DNA level was analyzed by Southern blotting. The relative replication ability and drug susceptibility compared to that of WT were quantified by using a PhosphorImager. (C) Summary of HBV clones that have substitutions at the rt181 and rt233 positions. The relative replication abilities of each clone compared to the WT are presented as the mean value of three independent experiments.