Association of NTCP Gene Polymorphisms and Spontaneous Clearance of Hepatitis B Virus in Asia: A Meta-Analysis

Context: It is reported that NTCP (sodium taurocholate cotransporting polypeptide) gene polymorphisms are associated with spontaneous clearance of hepatitis B virus (HBV), but the results are contradictory. Therefore, the current meta-analysis aimed at systematically clarifying the association between NTCP gene polymorphisms and spontaneous clearance of HBV in Asia. Evidence Acquisition: PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, China National Knowledge Infrastructure and China Wanfang Data were searched systematically for articles published before 09 August 2019. Results: A total of nine case-control studies were finally included in the current meta-analysis. The pooled results indicated that the NTCP gene rs2296651 A allele is a protective factor for spontaneous clearance of HBV (GG vs. GA+AA: odds ratio (OR) = 0.73, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.58 - 0.93; GG vs. GA: o‎r = 0.74, 95%CI = 0.59 - 0.93; G vs. A allele: o‎r = 0.74, 95%CI = 0.58 - 0.94). Conclusions: NTCP gene rs2296651 polymorphism is correlated with spontaneous clearance of HBV, while NTCP gene rs4646287 and rs7154439 variants are not associated with persistent HBV susceptibility.