Abstract: RESULTS: Sequencing studies of HBV DNA at week 52 showed the emergence of a lamivudine-resistant variant associated with two point mutations in the hepatitis B virus
polymerase gene: one mutation led to amino acid substitution of
methionine to valine at residue 552, in the highly conserved tyrosine-methionineaspartate-aspartate motif, part of the active site of the
polymerase; the second mutation consisted of a substitution of
leucine to methionine at residue 528.