Hepatitis B and D genomes in hepatitis B surface antigen negative patients with chronic hepatitis C

✍ Scribed by Sara González; Sonia Navas; Antonio Madejón; Javier Bartolomé; Inmaculada Castillo; Gloria Moraleda; Julio Martín; Eduardo Marriott; Montserrat Herrero; Dr. Vicente Carreño

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1995
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 607 KB
• Volume: 45
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0146-6615
• DOI: 10.1002/jmv.1890450210

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Hepatitis B and hepatitis D viral genomes were tested by nested polymerase chain reaction in the serum and liver of 69 hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) negative, anti‐hepatitis C virus (HCV) positive patients (47 with HCV RNA and 22 without HCV RNA). Serum hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA‐was detected in 49% of the patients with HCV‐RNA and in 64% of those without HCV‐RNA. Furthermore, intrahepatic HBV‐DNA was found in four of five (80%) of the biopsies analysed. Delta genome was found in 72% and 73%, respectively, of the anti‐HCV positive patients with or without HCV‐RNA. In addition, intrahepatic delta virus genome was detected in another four liver biopsies studied. In the group of patients with HCV‐RNA, the simultaneous presence of hepatitis B and D genomes was statistically higher in transfused patients than in drug addicts, or in those with an unknown infection route (P < 0.001). These results show a high percentage of B and D genomes in HBsAg negative patients with anti‐HCV, irrespective of the presence or absence of the HCV genome. However, the clinical implications of this finding should be examined in future studies. © 1995 Wiley‐Liss, inc.