GB virus C and HIV-1 RNA load in single virus and co-infected West African individuals.
BACKGROUND
Investigations on the impact of GB virus C (GBV-C) co-infection on HIV disease progression relied essentially on clinical follow-up but not on virologic parameters.


OBJECTIVE
To detect and quantify GBV-C RNA in West African populations co-infected or not with HIV-1 and to correlate the RNA load of HIV-1 and GBV-C in co-replicating patients with different clinical conditions.


METHODS
Three Ghanaian populations (blood donors, pregnant women and HIV-infected patients) were subdivided into six groups according to HIV-1 and clinical status and GBV-C and HIV-1 RNA load was tested by quantitative real time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. In one population with HIV-1 disease, CD4+ cell count was also measured.


RESULTS
Prevalence of GBV-C markers in HIV-1-infected groups and HIV-1 non-infected pregnant women were significantly higher than in healthy blood donors. Similar levels and distribution of GBV-C RNA load were found in each population irrespective of HIV-1 status except for a lower GBV-C RNA load in AIDS patients. There was a significant shift of HIV-1 load towards lower value when GBV-C RNA was present and a trend towards an inverse correlation between HIV-1 and GBV-C RNA load. A positive correlation between CD4+ cell count and GBV-C RNA load in symptomatic HIV-1-infected patients was observed.


CONCLUSIONS
The moderate impact of GBV-C on HIV-1 viremia is unlikely to entirely account for a favourable clinical outcome of replicating co-infections.
Li
Chengyao
C
National Blood Service, UK.
Collini
Paul
P
Danso
Kwabena
K
Owusu-Ofori
Shirley
S
Dompreh
Albert
A
Candotti
Daniel
D
Opare-Sem
Ohene
O
Allain
Jean-Pierre
JP
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D018178:Flaviviridae Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D029407:GB virus C; D005869:Ghana / Q000453:epidemiology; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D015497:HIV-1; D006525:Hepatitis, Viral, Human / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008875:Middle Aged; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D019562:Viral Load
D012367:RNA, Viral