Exceptional genetic variability of hepatitis B virus indicates that Rwanda is east of an emerging African genotype E/A1 divide.
In Western Africa, hepatitis B virus (HBV) genotype E predominates throughout a vast crescent spanning from Senegal to Namibia and at least to the Central African Republic to the East. Although from most of the eastern parts of sub-Saharan Africa only limited sets of strains have been characterized, these belong predominantly to genotype A. To study how far the genotype E crescent extends to the East, a larger number of HBV strains from Rwanda were analyzed. Phylogenetic analysis of 45 S fragment sequences revealed strains of genotypes A (n = 30), D (n = 10), C (n = 4), and B (n = 1). Twelve genotype A sequences formed a new cluster clearly separated from the reference strains of the known sub-genotypes. Thus, with four genotypes and at least six sub-genotypes and a new cluster of genotype A strains, HBV shows an exceptional genetic variability in this small country, unprecedented in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite this exceptional genetic variability, not a single genotype E virus was found indicating that this country does not belong to the genotype E crescent, but is east of an emerging African genotype E/A1 divide.
Hübschen
Judith M
JM
Institute of Immunology, Laboratoire National de Santé/Centre de Recherche Public de Santé, Luxembourg, Luxembourg.
Mugabo
Jules
J
Peltier
Cécile Alexandra
CA
Karasi
Jean-Claude
JC
Sausy
Aurélie
A
Kirpach
Pierre
P
Arendt
Vic
V
Muller
Claude P
CP
D016000:Cluster Analysis; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005838:Genotype; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology*; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D037841:Pregnant People; D012432:Rwanda / Q000453:epidemiology; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA
D004279:DNA, Viral