Infection with hepatitis G virus and its strain variant, the GB agent (GBV-C), among blood donors in Japan.
BACKGROUND
The purpose of the study was to survey the epidemiology of recently reported non-A through -E hepatitis virus designated hepatitis G virus (HGV) and its strain variant, the GB agent (GBV-C).


METHODS
Pilot samples from 2461 blood donors in Japan, randomly selected to form cohorts with different levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and markers of hepatitis B virus or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, were tested for RNA of HGV/GBV-C by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction with nested primers deduced from the 5'-noncoding region.


RESULTS
HGV/GBV-C RNA was detected in 23 (7.4%) of the 361 donors with anti-HCV and HCV RNA. This detection is more frequent than that in donors without elevated ALT levels (< or = 45 U/L) or markers of HCV or hepatitis B virus infection (15/1303; 1.2%) (p < 0.001), donors with ALT values between 46 and 99 U per L (0/108) (p < 0.002), donors with ALT values > or = 100 U per L (5/361; 1.4%), and donors with anti-HCV but without detectable HCV RNA (1/93; 1.1%) (p < 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
More than 1 percent of Japanese blood donors were infected with HGV/GBV-C, and the prevalence was much higher in those with HCV RNA. Should persistent infection with HGV/GBV-C induce any hepatotoxic sequelae, either alone or in concert with the other hepatitis viruses, screening of blood units for HGV/GBV-C would deserve consideration.
Yoshikawa
A
A
Japanese Red Cross Blood Centers at Saitama-Ken, Japan.
Fukuda
S
S
Itoh
K
K
Kosaki
N
N
Suzuki
T
T
Hirakawa
K
K
Nakao
H
H
Inoue
T
T
Fukuda
M
M
Okamoto
H
H
D000328:Adult; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D001482:Base Composition; D001483:Base Sequence; D001782:Blood Donors; D005260:Female; D018067:Flaviviridae; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000097:blood; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000635:transmission*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D065227:Transfusion Reaction
D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D012367:RNA, Viral; D000410:Alanine Transaminase