Hatice YILDIZ BEYTEKİN, Selami GÜNAL, Mehmet KÖROĞLU, Oğuz KARABAY, Hande TOPTAN
Anatolian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences - 2026;5(1):25-32
Hepatitis B remains an important global health problem, particularly in developing regions, where it contributes to morbidity, workforce loss, and economic burden, emphasizing the need for timely diagnosis and effective clinical management. Recently, serum hepatitis B virus ribonucleic acid (HBV RNA) has gained attention as a potential biomarker reflecting ongoing viral transcriptional activity. This study aimed to evaluate serum HBV RNA levels in patients with hepatitis B to assess disease activity, antiviral treatment response, the feasibility of safe treatment discontinuation, and early detection of viral reactivation, based on the premise that HBV RNA may remain detectable even when HBV deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is suppressed. 86 adult patients with hepatitis B were included according to predefined criteria. Plasma samples were collected and stored at -20 dereceC until analysis. Nucleic acid isolation was performed using the QIAamp(R) MinElute(R) Virus Spin Kit (Qiagen, Germany), and HBV RNA levels were determined using real-time polymerase chain reaction. Statistical analyses were conducted with SPSS version 24.0, applying Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests, with p<0.05 considered statistically significant. HBV RNA positivity was detected in 68.8% of patients positive for both hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and HBV DNA. Among HBsAg-positive but HBV DNA-negative patients, 12.5% were HBV RNA positive, while 9.1% of patients negative for both HBsAg and HBV DNA showed HBV RNA positivity. These findings indicate persistent low-level viral transcription or possible occult infection in selected cases. Overall, serum HBV RNA measurement may serve as a complementary biomarker for evaluating viral activity and monitoring hepatitis B infection.
