title: Epidemiological study and genetic analysis of GB virus C infection in general population from an area endemic for hepatitis C.
abstract: The aim of this work was to study the prevalence, potential risk factors, clinical and laboratory features of GB virus C (GBV-C) infection in general population from an area endemic for hepatitis C. A reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for detection of GBV-C RNA was used to examine the prevalence of GBV-C RNA in both hepatitis C virus (HCV) endemic (R town) and nonendemic areas (M town) in Yamagata prefecture, Japan. In R town, GBV-C RNA was detected in 23 (2.9%) out of the 800 residents, whereas anti-HCV and HCV-RNA were found in 226 (28.3%) and 163 (20.4%), respectively. The prevalence of GBV-C RNA in R town (2.9%) was higher than that in M town (1.0%), although the difference was not statistically significant. The individuals with anti-HCV had significantly higher frequency of active GBV-C-infection than those without anti-HCV in both towns. No evidence indicating that GBV-C infection affected the severity of hepatitis C was obtained. The multivariate analysis revealed that the young anti-HCV positive individuals with a history of blood transfusion had higher incidence of active GBV-C infection. The phylogenetic analysis showed that the GBV-C isolates from both R and M towns were divided into two separate branch groups designated HG and Asia GB groups.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Yamagata University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shinzawa
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Shao
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ishibashi
authors.forename: Q
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Misawa
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Togashi
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Takahashi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019353:Endemic Diseases; D005260:Female; D018067:Flaviviridae / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015995:Prevalence; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000302:isolation & purification
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral