The Correlation Of HCV Genotypes And Viral Loads Among Volunteer Blood Donors In Guangzhou

Viral Hepatitis C as Hepatitis C caused by Hepatitis C Virus (HCV, Hepatitis C Virus), now has become a serious common and frequently-occurring disease of liver. Viral Hepatitis C transmission is mainly through blood, a few cases through close contact. According to the World Health Organization (WHO):170million [1] people are infected with HCVand the infection rates is about3%worldwide. However, Hepatitis c virus infection rate is about3.2%population in our country. Hepatitis c virus infection will become persistent infection, only15%to40%of the patients will be recoverd because the viral self-limited clear, and the recoverd patients still have the risk of infection again because of the absence of producing antibody themselves. While50%to85%of the patients with acute infection will become chronic infection, since the chronic infection have longer clinical incubation period, it is difficult to find the disease immediately, therefore HCV virus cause liver damage in a long period, leading to serious liver lesions, from the initial hepatitis and gradually developed liver cirrhosis, even into liver cancer.10%～20%of the patients developed into the liver cirrhosis, and1%to5%become liver cancer (Hepatocellular Carcinoma, HCC), and HCV can lead to own immunity reduction because of amalgamative infection with other illnesses, such as syphilis, hepatitis b, HIV, etc. HCV genotypes and viral load may be closely related with clinical treatment and the assessment and treatment effect,thus becomes the important research direction of epidemiology.Objective The aim of this study was to determine the HCV genotype and the lastest correlation between HCV genotypes and viral loads among volunteer blood donors in Guangzhou.Methods605anti-HCV positive plasma samples were obtained from volunteer blood donors in Guangzhou during year of2008to2011. Firstly, HCV RNA in those samples were detected by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR). Further, NS5B gene was detected by Q-PCR followed by direct DNA sequencing and phylogenetic analysis in HCV RNA positive samples.Results337samples were found HCV RNA positive in605anti-HCV positive plasma samples.320samples (95%,320/337, based on NS5B gene) and311samples (92%,311/337,based on E1gene) were genotyped in337HCV RNA positive samples, and subtypes HCV lb,6a,3a,2a,3b, la,6n were detected at frequencies of45.00%,33.44%,8.75%,7.81%,4.38%,0.31%,0.31%, respectively. HCVlb was associated with a significantly (P<0.05) higher viral load compared to HCV6a,2a and3a, while HCV6a also had a relatively higher viral load than HCV2a and3a.Conclusion Male positive rate was significantly higher than female HCV lb and6a were the most predominant subtypes due to the higher viral load than the other subtypes among volunteer blood donors in Guangzhou.