Hepatitis B Virus DNA Detection by In Situ Hybridization in Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma

The distribution of hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA in tumor tissue sections from six Korean patients with HBsAg positive hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) was examined by in situ hybridization using a biotin-labeled recombinant, cloned HBV DNA probe. All patients tested were positive for both HBeAg and anti-HBc in their sera. HBV DNA was distributed abundantly in the cytoplasm and rarely in the nuclei of tumor cells. The validity of the in situ hybridization assay was confirmed by the dot blotting technique using a (32)P-labeled HBV DNA probe obtained by nick translation. In conclusion, it is speculated that integration of HBV DNA into host DNA as well as persistant amplified replication of the HBV DNA within the hepatocytes is linked etiologically to the development of human hepatocellular carcinoma.