Risk of hepatitis C virus infections through household contact with chronic carriers: analysis of nucleotide sequences.
We evaluated the risk of hepatitis C virus transmission through household contact with chronic carriers using nucleotide sequence analysis. Chronic hepatitis C patients (76 patients) were divided into two groups: familial transmission of hepatitis C virus was studied in group A (53 patients); group B (23 patients) served as nonfamilial controls for group A. Of 88 family members of group A patients, 18 (20%) had elevated serum ALT levels, 20 (23%) had antibodies against hepatitis C virus and 16 (18%) had hepatitis C virus RNA in serum. Nucleotide sequences of the region of the hepatitis C virus genome spanning the core and envelope genes were compared among the three groups. In group B, the average nucleotide sequence homology was 91.0% +/- 2.29% (a pairwise comparison was made for each of the patients; n = 253). Isolates from two family members were significantly more homologous to isolates from corresponding patients in group A than to isolates from group B patients. Of the two isolates from family members, one was from a child whose mother was a patient (97.7% homology) and one was from a spouse (98.1% homology). These results strongly suggest familial transmission of the same hepatitis C virus strain. Further studies are necessary to elucidate the route of intrafamilial transmission.
First Department of Internal Medicine, Kanazawa University, Japan.
M
M
Honda
S
S
Kaneko
M
M
Unoura
K
K
Kobayashi
S
S
Murakami
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D001483:Base Sequence; D002353:Carrier State; D005190:Family; D005260:Female; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D012307:Risk Factors; D017385:Sequence Homology; D014758:Viral Core Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins / Q000235:genetics
D012367:RNA, Viral; D014758:Viral Core Proteins; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins; D000410:Alanine Transaminase