{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,17]],"date-time":"2026-05-17T06:02:27Z","timestamp":1778997747721,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":30,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"11","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,11,16]],"date-time":"2022-11-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1668556800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Rennes Metropole","award":["AIS 2018"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["AIS 2018"]}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100003323","name":"Agence Nationale de Recherches sur le Sida et les H\u00e9patites Virales","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["16188"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["16188"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100003323","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Hepatitis B virus (HBV) morphogenesis is characterized by a large over-production of subviral particles and recently described new forms in parallel of complete viral particles (VP). This study was designed to depict circulating viral forms in HBV infected patient plasmas, using velocity gradients and most sensitive viral markers. Plasmas from chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients, HBeAg positive or negative, genotype D or E, were fractionated on velocity and equilibrium gradients with or without detergent treatment. Antigenic and molecular markers were measured in plasma and in each collected fraction. Fast Nycodenz velocity gradients revealed good reproducibility and provided additional information to standard equilibrium sucrose gradients. HBV-RNAs circulated as enveloped particles in all plasmas, except one, and at lesser concentrations than VP. Calculations based on standardized measurements and relative virion and subviral particle molecular stoichiometry allowed to refine the experimental approach. For the HBeAg-positive plasma, VP were accompanied by an overproduction of enveloped capsids, either containing HBs, likely corresponding to empty virions, or for the main part, devoid of this viral envelope protein. Similarly, in the HBeAg-negative sample, HBs enveloped capsids, likely corresponding to empty virions, were detected and the presence of enveloped capsids devoid of HBs protein was suspected but not clearly evidenced due to the presence of contaminating high-density subviral particles. While HBeAg largely influences HBcrAg measurement and accounts for two-thirds of HBcrAg reactivity in HBeAg-positive patients, it remains a 10 times more sensitive marker than HBsAg to characterize VP containing fractions. Using Nycodenz velocity gradients and standardized biomarkers, our study proposes a detailed characterization of circulating viral forms in chronically HBV infected patients. We provide evidence for an excess of capsids in fractions enriched in Dane particles, likely due to the presence of empty virions but also by capsids enveloped by an HBs free lipid layer. Identification of this new circulating viral particle sets the basis for studies around the potential role of these entities in hepatitis B pathogeny and their physiological regulation.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0272474","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,11,16]],"date-time":"2022-11-16T13:32:01Z","timestamp":1668605521000},"page":"e0272474","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":4,"title":["Characterization of hepatitis B viral forms from patient plasma using velocity gradient: Evidence for an excess of capsids in fractions enriched in Dane particles"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Charlotte","family":"Pronier","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3065-449X","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"J\u00e9r\u00e9my","family":"Bomo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Juliette","family":"Besombes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Valentine","family":"Genet","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Syria","family":"Laperche","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Philippe","family":"Gripon","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6517-2901","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Vincent","family":"Thibault","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,11,16]]},"reference":[{"key":"pone.0272474.ref001","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"571","DOI":"10.1099\/jgv.0.001415","article-title":"ICTV Virus Taxonomy Profile: Hepadnaviridae","volume":"101","author":"L Magnius","year":"2020","journal-title":"J Gen Virol"},{"key":"pone.0272474.ref002","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"S4","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jhep.2016.01.027","article-title":"Overview of hepatitis B viral replication and genetic variability","volume":"64","author":"S Tong","year":"2016","journal-title":"J Hepatol"},{"key":"pone.0272474.ref003","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10205","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.0704000104","article-title":"Involvement of host cellular multivesicular body functions in hepatitis B virus budding","volume":"104","author":"T Watanabe","year":"2007","journal-title":"Proc Natl Acad Sci"},{"key":"pone.0272474.ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2023","DOI":"10.3390\/cells9092023","article-title":"Intracellular Trafficking of HBV Particles","volume":"9","author":"B Jiang","year":"2020","journal-title":"Cells"},{"key":"pone.0272474.ref005","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3330","DOI":"10.1128\/JVI.03109-15","article-title":"Subviral Hepatitis B Virus Filaments, like Infectious Viral Particles, Are Released via Multivesicular Bodies","volume":"90","author":"B Jiang","year":"2015","journal-title":"J Virol"},{"key":"pone.0272474.ref006","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"561","DOI":"10.1111\/jvh.12361","article-title":"Genome-free hepatitis B virion levels in patient sera as a potential marker to monitor response to antiviral therapy","volume":"22","author":"L Luckenbaugh","year":"2015","journal-title":"J Viral Hepat"},{"key":"pone.0272474.ref007","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e1002255","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.ppat.1002255","article-title":"Secretion of Genome-Free Hepatitis B Virus\u2013Single Strand Blocking Model for Virion Morphogenesis of Para-retrovirus","volume":"7","author":"X Ning","year":"2011","journal-title":"PLoS Pathog"},{"key":"pone.0272474.ref008","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1281","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jhep.2017.07.011","article-title":"How viral genetic variants and genotypes influence disease and treatment outcome of chronic hepatitis B. 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