Distribution of HCV genotypes among blood donors, patients with chronic liver disease, hepatocellular carcinoma, and patients on maintenance hemodialysis in Korea

✍ Scribed by Lee, Dong-Soon; Sung, Young-Chul; Whang, You-Sung

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1996
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 598 KB
• Volume: 49
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0146-6615
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1096-9071(199605)49:1<55::aid-jmv9>3.0.co;2-j

✦ Synopsis

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a single-stranded RNA virus related t o the Flaviviridae family, and striking nucleotide sequence diversity has been reported among HCV isolates from different geographic areas. To study the distribution HCV genotypes among disease groups in Korea, we subtyped HCV using the method of Okamoto et al. [(1992a): Journal of General Virology 73:673-6791 and the reverse hybridization method (INNO-LiPA) on 138 patients who were HCV polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-positive: 30 blood donors, 30 with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), 33 with chronic hepatitis, 15 with liver cirrhosis, and 30 patients on maintenance hemodialysis in Korea. In 30 blood donors, HCV genotype 1 b was most dominant (80%). followed by genotype 2a (13.3%), and 2b (6.7%). In 30 HCC cases, HCV genotype 1 b was less frequent (60%), compared to blood donors, followed by genotype 2a (33.3%), and unclassified (6.7%). In 33 chronic hepatitis cases, HCV genotype 1 b was also dominant (63.6%), followed by genotype 2a (30.3%), and l a (6.1%). In 15 patients with liver cirrhosis, HCV genotype 1 b was also dominant (60%), followed by genotype 2a (33.3%), and l a (6.7%). In 30 patients on maintenance hemodialysis, HCV genotype 1 b was dominant (86.7%), followed by genotype 2a (13.3%). In conclusion, among 138 HCV PCR-positive patients, type 1 b was the prevailing type (71%), followed by type 2a (23.9%), type l a (2.1%), type 2b (1.5%), and unclassified (1.5%) in Korea. The prevalence of type I b in blood donors (80%) was higher than in patients with liver disease (61.5%) and the prevalence of type I b was the lowest in patients with HCC (60%).