title: The molecular and antigenic tissue impact of viral infections on liver transplant patients with neonatal hepatitis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Pathogenesis of neonatal hepatitis relates to various underlying causes including viral infections. Both hepatotropic and non-hepatotropic viruses may induce liver failures in infants before birth, during delivery, or shortly after birth.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The tissue impact of HCMV, HSV, HBV, HCV, and rotavirus and adenovirus infections was evaluated in studied infants with neonatal hepatitis.
  
  
  METHODS
  The history of viral infections was analyzed in paraffin-embedded biopsy and autopsy tissues of 22 infants with neonatal hepatitis between years 1996 and 2007, retrospectively. The tissue molecular presentation of HBV, HCV, HCMV, HSV, adenovirus, and rotavirus was evaluated by different qualitative simple and nested PCR and RT-PCR protocols. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) method was used for studying the antigenic prevalence of HSV-1, 2; HBV, HCMV and adenovirus infections. Also the laboratory liver indices of all patients with neonatal hepatitis were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The HBV and HSV genomes were detected in 3 (14%) of 22 infants. The rotavirus and HCV-RNA and also the HCMV-DNA were detected separately in 1 (4%) of 26 paraffin-embedded autopsy and biopsy tissues. The HBV and HSV-1 specific antigens were separately diagnosed in 1 (4%) of 26 neonatal samples by IHC protocols. Also the HSV-2 antigen was seen in 5 (23%) of 22 liver autopsy and biopsy specimens. Co-infections with HCMV, HSV, HBV, HCV, and rotavirus were detected in these infants with hepatitis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Diagnosis of single and mixed molecular and antigenic traces of HCMV, HSV, HBV, HCV and rotavirus underlines the etiologic role of these viruses in clinical pathogenesis of neonatal hepatitis.
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Yaghobi
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Geramizadeh
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zamani
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rahsaz
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Azarpira
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Karimi
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ayatolahi
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hossein Aghdai
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran, ; Organ Transplant Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nikeghbalian
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bahador
authors.affiliation: Organ Transplant Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Salahi
authors.affiliation: Shiraz Transplant Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran, ; Organ Transplant Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Malek-Hosseini
keywords: IHC; Neonatal hepatitis; PCR; Viral infections