Combination of DNA Prime – Adenovirus Boost Immunization with Entecavir Elicits Sustained Control of Chronic Hepatitis B in the Woodchuck Model
Figure 4
Quantification of the WHV loads before and after the immunization trials in WHV transgenic mice.
The viral load was evaluated by quantitative real-time PCR with the detection limit of 103 genome equivalents (GE) per milliliter serum. For analysis DNA samples obtained from the serum of mice were used. The single pair of dots connected with the line represents values obtained from one mouse before (time point of cardiotoxin pretreatment) and after the immunization trials (week 2 after the last immunization). The correlations of the WHV loads for 4 immunization groups of mice are presented: (A) control group primed with ‘empty’ pCG and boosted with Ad5 expressing GFP, (B) group immunized only with DNA vaccine – pCGWHc, (C) group primed with pCGWHc and boosted with Ad5WHc, and (D) group primed with pCGWHc and boosted twice with Ad5WHc and Ad35WHc. The statistical analysis was performed using the Wilcoxon signed rank test (*<0.05; ***<0.0005; ns – not significant).