Korean J Hepatol.  2010 Jun;16(2):112-122. 10.3350/kjhep.2010.16.2.112.

Pro-apoptotic function of hepatitis B virus X protein

• Kim KH

• KMID: 1792589
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3350/kjhep.2010.16.2.112

Abstract

Infection of hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a main cause of liver diseases including hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Among the HBV-encoded proteins, the HBV X protein (HBx) has been suspected to be strongly involved in HBV-associated liver pathogenesis. HBx, a virally encoded multifunctional regulator, has been shown to induce apoptosis, anti-apoptosis, proliferation, and transformation of cells depending on the cell lines, model systems used, assay protocols, and research groups. Among the several activities of HBx, the pro-apoptotic function of HBx will be discussed in this review. Given that the disruption of apoptosis pathway by HBx contributes to the liver pathogenesis, a better understanding of the molecular interference in the cellular pro-apoptotic networks by HBx will provide useful clues for the intervention in HBV-mediated liver diseases.

Keyword

Hepatitis B virus; X protein; Apoptosis; Hepatocellular carcinoma

MeSH Terms

*Apoptosis
Hepatitis B/etiology
Liver Diseases/metabolism/virology
Trans-Activators/*metabolism
Tumor Necrosis Factors/metabolism
Tumor Suppressor Protein p53/metabolism