Influence of CD4(+) lymphocyte counts on GB virus C hepatitis G virus carriership in HIV-positive individuals

The duration of the GB virus C or hepatitis G virus (GBV-C/HGV) carriership varies according to the patient group studied. The immune competence of th e host may be important. GBV-C/HGV was studied in human immunodeficiency vi rus (HIV)-infected persons and an attempt was made to correlate the presenc e of viral RNA or E2 antibodies with CD4(+) lymphocyte counts. Of 138 HIV-p ositive subjects, 30 were GBV-C/HGV RNA-positive and 20 others were E2 anti body-positive, whereas in healthy GBV-C/HGV-infected persons, the proportio n of E2 antibody carriers was much higher. On the other hand, a relationshi p was not found between CD4(+) lymphocyte counts and the presence of GBV-C/ HGV RNA in the HIV-infected persons. This result does not necessarily imply that the CD4(+) lymphocyte count does not affect viral clearance, but the results could be due to the trans-sectional nature of this study. A longitu dinal assessment should clarify this point. (C) 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.