Classification of hepatitis B virus genotype B into 2 major types based on characterization of a novel subgenotype in Arctic indigenous populations.
Hepatitis B virus genotype B (HBV/B) has been classified into 5 subgenotypes. Except for Bj/B1 in Japan, the subgenotypes (Ba/B2-B5) have undergone recombination with HBV/C in the core promoter/precore/core genomic region. Phylogenetic analyses of complete sequences show that the Arctic strains belong to a novel subgenotype (HBV/B6) without the recombination, analogous to what is seen with Bj/B1. Comparison of 50 HBV/B6 carriers from the Arctic versus 50 Bj and 50 Ba age- and sex-matched carriers from Asia revealed that clinical characteristics of HBV/B6 carriers were similar to those of Bj/B1 carriers in Japan. The results suggest that HBV/B may be classified into nonrecombinant (Bj/B1 and B6) and recombinant (Ba/B2-B5) types.
Sakamoto
Tomoyuki
T
Department of Clinical Molecular Informative Medicine, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, Japan.
Tanaka
Yasuhito
Y
Simonetti
Josephine
J
Osiowy
Carla
C
Borresen
Malene L
ML
Koch
Anders
A
Kurbanov
Fuat
F
Sugiyama
Masaya
M
Minuk
Gerald Y
GY
McMahon
Brian J
BJ
Joh
Takashi
T
Mizokami
Masashi
M
D001110:Arctic Regions / Q000453:epidemiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D016679:Genome, Viral; D005838:Genotype; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology*; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D044382:Population Groups