The concentration of adefovir that inhibited 50% of viral DNA synthesis (EC50) in HBV transfected human hepatoma cell lines ranged from 0.2 to 2.5 µM. The combination of adefovir with lamivudine showed additive anti-HBV activity.

Clinical isolates with genotypic changes conferring reduced susceptibility in cell culture to nucleoside analog reverse transcriptase inhibitors for the treatment of HBV infection have been observed. Long-term resistance analyses performed by genotyping samples from all adefovir dipivoxil-treated patients with detectable serum HBV DNA demonstrated that amino acid substitutions rtN236T and rtA181T/V have been observed in association with adefovir resistance. In cell culture, the rtN236T substitution demonstrated 4- to 14-fold, the rtA181V substitution 2.5- to 4.2-fold, and the rtA181T substitution 1.3-to 1.9-fold reduced susceptibility to adefovir.

In HBeAg-positive nucleoside-naïve patient isolates (Study GS-98-437, N=171), no adefovir resistance-associated substitutions were observed at Week 48. Sixty-five patients continued on long term treatment after a median duration on adefovir dipivoxil of 235 weeks (range 110–279 weeks). Isolates from 16 of 38 (42%) patients developed adefovir resistance-associated substitutions in the setting of virologic failure (confirmed increase of at least 1 log10 HBV DNA copies/mL above nadir or never suppressed below 103 copies/mL). The substitutions included rtN236T (N=2), rtA181V (N=4), rtA181T (N=3), rtA181T+rtN236T (N=5), and rtA181V+rtN236T (N=2). In HBeAg-negative nucleoside-naïve patients (Study GS-98-438), isolates from 30 patients were identified with adefovir resistance-associated substitutions with a cumulative probability of 0%, 3%, 11%, 19%, and 30% at 48, 96, 144, 192, and 240 weeks, respectively. Of those 30 patients, 22 had a confirmed increase of at least 1 log10 HBV DNA copies/mL above nadir or never achieved HBV DNA levels below 103 copies/mL; an additional 8 patients had adefovir resistance-associated substitutions without virologic failure. In addition, the long term (4 to 5 years) development of resistance to adefovir dipivoxil was significantly lower in patients who had serum HBV DNA below the limit of quantification (less than 1,000 copies/mL) at Week 48 as compared to patients who had serum HBV DNA above 1,000 copies/mL at Week 48.

In an open-label study of pre- and post-liver transplantation patients (Study GS-98-435), isolates from 129 patients with clinical evidence of lamivudine-resistant hepatitis B virus at baseline were evaluated for adefovir resistance-associated substitutions. The incidence of adefovir resistance-associated (rtN236T or rtA181T/V) substitutions was 0% at 48 weeks. Isolates from four patients developed the rtN236T substitution after 72 weeks of adefovir dipivoxil therapy. Development of the rtN236T substitution was associated with serum HBV DNA rebound. All 4 patients who developed the rtN236T substitution in their HBV had discontinued lamivudine therapy before the development of genotypic resistance and all 4 lost the lamivudine resistance-associated substitutions present at baseline. In a study of 35 HIV/HBV co-infected patients with lamivudine-resistant HBV (Study 460i) who added adefovir dipivoxil to lamivudine, no adefovir resistance-associated substitutions were observed in HBV isolates from 15/35 patients tested up to 144 weeks of therapy.

In a Phase 3 pediatric Study GS-US-103-518, HBV isolates from 49 of 56 pediatric subjects (aged 12 to 17 years) had serum HBV DNA greater than 169 copies/mL and were evaluated for adefovir resistance-associated substitutions. rtN236T and/or rtA181V adefovir resistance-associated substitutions were not observed at Week 48. However, the rtA181T substitution was present in baseline and Week 48 isolates from 2 pediatric patients.

Recombinant HBV variants containing lamivudine-resistance-associated substitutions (rtL180M, rtM204I, rtM204V, rtL180M + rtM204V, rtV173L + rtL180M + rtM204V) were susceptible to adefovir in cell culture. Adefovir dipivoxil has also demonstrated anti-HBV activity (median reduction in serum HBV DNA of 4.1 log10copies/mL) in patients with HBV containing lamivudine-resistance-associated substitutions (Study 435). Adefovir also demonstrated in cell culture activity against HBV variants with entecavir resistance-associated substitutions (rtT184G, rtS202I, rtM250V). HBV variants with DNA polymerase substitutions rtT128N and rtR153Q or rtW153Q associated with resistance to hepatitis B virus immunoglobulin were susceptible to adefovir in cell culture.

HBV variants expressing the adefovir resistance-associated substitution rtN236T showed no change in susceptibility to entecavir in cell culture, and a 2- to 3-fold decrease in lamivudine susceptibility. HBV mutants with the adefovir resistance-associated substitution rtA181V showed a range of decreased susceptibilities to lamivudine of 1- to 14-fold and a 12-fold decrease in susceptibility to entecavir. In patients whose HBV expressed the rtA181V substitution (N=2) or the rtN236T substitution (N=3), a reduction in serum HBV DNA of 2.4 to 3.1 and 2.0 to 5.1 log10 copies/mL, respectively, was observed when treatment with lamivudine was added to treatment with adefovir dipivoxil.^[1]

Adapted from the FDA Package Insert.