The nucleotide sequence of cDNA from a high-passage, cell culture-adapted variant of hepatitis A virus strain HM175 was compared with the previously determined sequences of wild-type virus and two other cell culture-adapted variants. A total of 42 nucleotide changes were detected when the sequence was compared with wild-type virus. Five of these changes were common to all cell culture-adapted strains and a further two changes were shared by the strains that had experienced the greatest number

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... cell culture passages. The mutations were distributed throughout the genome coding for amino acid substitutions in regions 2B, 2C and 3D with silent changes in 1C and the 5' non-coding region. The possible relevance of these mutations to cell culture adaptation and attenuation is discussed.