A
survey was conducted in a
blood donor population of Central
Brazil aiming to investigate the
prevalence of
GB virus C (
GBV-C)/
hepatitis G virus (HGV)
infection and also to analyze the
virus genotypes distribution. A total of 241 voluntary
blood donors were interviewed at the
State Blood Bank in Goiânia,
State of Goiás,
Brazil.
Blood samples were collected and
serum samples tested for
GBV-C/HGV
RNA by
polymerase chain reaction.
Genotypes were determined by
restriction fragment length polymorphism (
RFLP)
analysis. Seventeen samples were
GBV-C/HGV
RNA-positive, resulting in a
prevalence of 7.1 percent (95 percent CI 4.2-11.1). A significant trend of
GBV-C/HGV
RNA positivity in relation to age was observed, with the highest
prevalence in
donors between 29-39 years old. Ten infected individuals were characterized by
reporting parenteral (30 percent), sexual (18 percent), both (6 percent) and intrafamiliar (6 percent)
transmission. However, 7 (40 percent)
GBV-C/HGV
RNA-positive
donors did not mention any potential
transmission route.
RFLP analysis revealed the presence of
genotypes 1 and 2 of
GBV-C/HGV; more precisely, 10 (58.9 percent) samples were found
belonging to the 2b subtype, 4 (23.5 percent) to the 2a subtype, and 3 (17.6 percent) to
genotype 1. The present data indicate an intermediate endemicity of
GBV-C/HGV
infection among this
blood donor population, and a predominant circulation of
genotype 2 (subtype 2b) in Central
Brazil (AU)