Infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) remains a severe concern to public health, with roughly 292 million people worldwide suffering from the chronic form of the disease, for which there is no cure. Chronic HBV infections frequently lead to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), one of the world’s leading causes of cancer-related deaths. Although the process of hepatocarcinogenesis is complex and not fully understood, various studies have identified numerous long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) as contributing to the formation of HCC. These host-derived lncRNAs are frequently dysregulated as a result of viral infection. Numerous lncRNAs have been linked to HBV carcinogenesis and replication, particularly those that are dysregulated in HBV-associated HCC. HBV X protein regulates the majority of these dysregulated lncRNAs. Certain lncRNAs have been found to exert regulatory functions in HBV replication and carcinogenesis. The prognosis for HCC remains poor, and early detection of novel tumor markers is critical for effective HCC therapy. Understanding the biological activities and regulatory mechanisms of HCC-associated lncRNAs will aid in disease diagnosis and therapy and help elucidate the disease etiology. In HBV-related HCC, certain dysregulated lncRNAs may develop into biomarkers for early detection or potential targets for HCC treatment. This review provides a brief overview of the recent findings on lncRNAs in HBV with a focus on current developments. We also investigated the possible relevance of dysregulated lncRNAs in HCC as biomarkers for diagnosis and treatment and assessed their carcinogenic and tumor-suppressive effects.

Periodically updating coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) vaccines that offer broad-spectrum protection is needed given the strong immune evasion by the circulating omicron sublineages. The effectiveness of prototype and BA.4/5-containing bivalent mRNA vaccines is reduced when XBB subvariants predominate. We initiated an observer-blinded, three-arms study in 376 patients in Chinese individuals aged from 18 to 55 years old who had previously received three doses COVID-19 vaccine. Immunogenicity in terms of neutralizing antibodies elicited by a 30-μg dose of XBB.1.5-containing bivalent vaccine (RQ3027), a 30-μg dose of BA.2/BA.5-Alpha/Beta bivalent vaccine (RQ3025) and their precedent 30-μg Alpha/Beta (combined mutations) monovalent mRNA vaccine (RQ3013) and safety are primary and secondary endpoints, respectively. We recorded prescribed COVID-19 cases to explore the preliminary efficacy of three vaccines. RQ3027 and RQ3025 boosters elicited superior neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) against XBB.1.5, XBB.1.16, XBB.1.9.1, and JN.1 compared to RQ3013 at day 14 in participants without SARS-CoV-2 infection. All study vaccines were well-tolerated without serious adverse reactions identified. The incidence rates per 1000 person-years of COVID-19 cases during the 2nd-19th week after randomization were lowest in RQ3027. Overall, our data show that XBB.1.5-containing bivalent booster generated superior immunogenicity and better protection against newer severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants compared to BA.2/BA.5-containing bivalent and Alpha/Beta monovalent with no new safety concerns.