PREVALENCE, IMPLICATION, AND VIRAL NUCLEOTIDE-SEQUENCE ANALYSIS OF GB-VIRUS-C HEPATITIS-G VIRUS-INFECTION IN ACUTE FULMINANT AND NONFULMINANT HEPATITIS

The clinical impact of GB virus-C (GBV-C)/hepatitis G virus (HGV) infe ction on various causes of acute hepatitis and fulminant hepatitis is controversial. In this study, serum samples from 164 patients with acu te hepatitis of various causes, 34 asymptomatic hepatitis B virus (HBV ) carriers, and 34 healthy adults were tested for GBV-C/HGV RNA by rev erse transcription-nested polymerase chain reaction using primers base d on the 5'-untranslated region. Nucleotide sequences of GBV-C/HGV RNA from various groups were compared. The prevalence of GBV-C/HGV RNA wa s significantly higher in patients with acute hepatitis D virus (HDV) superinfection than in HBV carriers or healthy controls (10/37 vs. 2/3 4, P < 0.02; 10/37 vs. 1/34, < 0.005). GBV-C/HGV RNA was detected in 1 1.1% of acute hepatitis A patients, 9.5% of acute hepatitis B patients , 15.8% of acute hepatitis C patients, 12.5% of acute hepatitis E pati ents, 11.8% of chronic hepatitis B patients with acute exacerbation, a nd 11.1% in patients with non-A to -E hepatitis; each was not signific antly higher than that in HBV carriers or healthy adults. There were n o significant differences in gender, age, serum albumin, bilirubin, an d alanine aminotransferase levels nor in the occurrence of fulminant h epatitis (6/ 28 vs. 36/136) between patients with or without GBV-C/HGV RNA. All six patients with fulminant hepatitis who had GBV-C/HGV RNA were complicated by infection with hepatitis B, C, or D. The GBV-C/HGV clones from 21 patients with or without fulminant hepatitis belonged to group 3. No particular strain of GBV-C/HGV was associated with fulm inant hepatitis. J. Med. Virol. 56:118-122, 1998. (C) 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.