Hepatitis E antibody kinetics in Nepalese patients.
A cohort of 62 Nepalese adults with acute hepatitis E was identified and total Ig as well as IgM levels to hepatitis E virus (HEV) capsid protein were determined using the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) immunoassay. An antibody profile was constructed from serial serum specimens collected up to 14 months following the onset of illness. The decline in total Ig was rapid for the first 3 months. There followed a slow, sustained decline, but antibodies remained above the seropositive level of 20 WRAIR units. The decline of IgM was steeper than total Ig for the first 3 months, but IgM remained detectable after 14 months in 25% of cases. Study data contribute to an understanding of the pathophysiology of human hepatitis E and set an antibody response pattern to be targeted as a part of HEV vaccine development.
Department of Virology, Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences, 315/6 Rajvithi Road, Bangkok 10400, Thailand. myintk@afrims.org
Khin Saw Aye
KS
Myint
Timothy P
TP
Endy
Mrigendra P
MP
Shrestha
Sanjaya K
SK
Shrestha
David W
DW
Vaughn
Bruce L
BL
Innis
Robert V
RV
Gibbons
Robert A
RA
Kuschner
Jitvimol
J
Seriwatana
Robert McN
RM
Scott
D000328:Adult; D036022:Capsid Proteins / Q000097:blood; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies / Q000378:metabolism*; D016751:Hepatitis E / Q000276:immunology*; D016752:Hepatitis E virus / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000378:metabolism; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D009390:Nepal; D012189:Retrospective Studies
D036022:Capsid Proteins; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007075:Immunoglobulin M