ABSTRACT
Brazil is a country of continental dimension with a population of different ethnic backgrounds. Thus, a wide variation in the frequencies of hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotypes is expected to occur. To address this point, 1,688 sequential samples from chronic HCV patients were analyzed. HCV-RNA was amplified by the RT-PCR from blood samples collected from 1995 to 2000 at different laboratories located in different cities from all Brazilian States. Samples were collected in tubes containing a gel separator, centrifuged in the site of collection and sent by express mail in a refrigerated container to Laboratório Bioquímico Jardim Paulista, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. HCV- RNA was extracted from serum and submitted to RT and nested PCR using standard procedures. Nested PCR products were submitted to cycle sequencing reactions without prior purification. Sequences were analyzed for genotype determination and the following frequencies were found: 64.9 percent (1,095) for genotype 1, 4.6 percent (78) for genotype 2, 30.2 percent (510) for genotype 3, 0.2 percent (3) for genotype 4, and 0.1 percent (2) for genotype 5. The frequencies of HCV genotypes were statistically different among Brazilian regions (P = 0.00017). In all regions, genotype 1 was the most frequent (51.7 to 74.1 percent), reaching the highest value in the North; genotype 2 was more prevalent in the Center-West region (11.4 percent), especially in Mato Grosso State (25.8 percent), while genotype 3 was more common in the South (43.2 percent). Genotypes 4 and 5 were rarely found and only in the Southeast, in São Paulo State. The present data indicate the need for careful epidemiological surveys throughout Brazil since knowing the frequency and distribution of the genotypes would provide key information for understanding the spread of HCV.
Subject(s)
Humans , Hepacivirus/genetics , Hepatitis C, Chronic/virology , RNA, Viral/genetics , /genetics , Base Sequence , Brazil/epidemiology , Genotype , Hepatitis C, Chronic/epidemiology , Molecular Sequence Data , Polymerase Chain Reaction , Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction , Viral Envelope Proteins/geneticsSubject(s)
Humans , Male , Female , Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/epidemiology , Brazil/epidemiology , IncidenceABSTRACT
Os autores relatam o caso de um homem de 27 anos com grave polineuropatia, múltiplos distúrbios endócrinos, ascite, edemas, alteraçöes de pele e lesöes osteocondensantes em vários ossos. O diagnóstico clínico e laboratorial é compatível com síndrome POEMS. O paciente evoluiu mal, vindo a falecer. É feita revisäo da literatura. Näo se constatou relato brasileiro prévio dessa enfermidade.