DETECTION OF HEPATITIS-B VIRUS SEQUENCES IN LIVER-TISSUES OF SERONEGATIVE ORGAN DONORS

The HBV carrier rate is higher in southeast Asia than in other parts o f the world. To explore the possibility of HBV transmission through or gan transplantation, we tested the presence of HBV DNA in liver tissue of six HBV seronegative organ donors from China. DNA extracted from l iver tissue was analysed by a sensitive polymerase chain reaction (PCR ) assay for the S, C and X genes of HBV followed by Southern blot (SE) and hybridization with a P-32-labeled HBV specific probe. All six liv er specimens were found to be negative for both HBsAg and HBcAg by imm unohistochemical staining and no histological changes were observed, b ut four liver extracts were positive for HBV S and C sequences, and on e of the four was positive for the X region by PCR-SB. This suggests t hat seronegative HBV markers do not exclude the existence of low copy number of HBV DNA in liver tissue. PCR followed by Southern blot analy sis is recommended for HBV screening of organ donors from high endemic areas to reduce the potential for HBV transmission by organ transplan tation.