Clarification of interspousal hepatitis C virus infection in acute hepatitis C patients by molecular evolutionary analyses: Consideration on sexual and non-sexual transmission between spouses

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http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1872-034X.2011.00843.x/abstract

Clarification of interspousal hepatitis C virus infection in acute hepatitis C

patients by molecular evolutionary analyses: Consideration on sexual and

non-sexual transmission between spouses

Ikuo Nakamura1,2,*, Yasuhito Tanaka3, Kaori Ochiai2, Fuminori Moriyasu1, Masashi

Mizokami4, Michio Imawari5Article first published online: 23

JUN 2011

DOI: 10.1111/j.1872-034X.2011.00843.x

© 2011 The Japan Society of Hepatology

Issue

Hepatology Research

Early View (Online Version of Record published before inclusion in an issue)

Aim:  Previous studies evaluating the possibilities of interspousal sexual

transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV) have yielded many conflicting results.

The aim of this study was to clarify the source of HCV infection in acute

hepatitis C patients using phylogenetic analyses of nucleotide sequences of HCV

E1 region.

Methods:  Four acute hepatitis C patients were hospitalized in 2002–2007.

The diagnosis was based on medical records, laboratory tests including HCV

markers, and ultrasonographic examination of the liver. In each spouse of four

patients, serum HCV antibody was assayed. In the subjects whose serum HCV

antibody was positive, additional tests on HCV viral load and genotype were

carried out. Then phylogenetic analyses of nucleotide sequences of partial HCV

E1 region (440 nucleotides) of the patients and their spouses were performed.

Results:  Hepatitis C virus antibody changed from negative to positive in the

course of hospitalization and HCV RNA could be detected in every patient.

Therefore they were diagnosed as acute hepatitis caused by HCV infection. In

every spouse of four patients, HCV antibody and HCV RNA were positive. Three of

four couples had the identical genotype and homogeneity of nucleotide sequences

of HCV E1 region in three couples ranged from 97.9% to 100%. The results of

phylogenic analyses suggested that interspousal HCV infection occurred in the

three couples.

Conclusion:  In conclusion, interspousal infection might be one of the

important sources of acute HCV infection in Japan. The usefulness of

phylogenetic analysis of nucleotide sequences of HCV E1 region for clarifying

interspousal HCV infection was validated.