Hepatitis delta virus and GBV-C infection in two neighboring hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus-endemic villages in Taiwan.

A total of 74 adult residents of Wukwai (W) village and 95 adults residents of Haipu (H) village were studied. Laboratory tests for all subjects included alanine transaminase (ALT), hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), anti-HCV, HCV RNA, genotype of HCV, GBV-C RNA, and anti-GBV-C E2. Anti- HDV was checked only in HBsAg-positive subjects. In HBV and HCV-endemic areas, GBV-C was more prevalent in areas with a higher prevalence of anti-HCV. Positive HCV-RNA, but not GBV-C infection, was associated with ALT elevation. Previous reports in Taiwan have shown that the hepatitis B virus (HBV)- and hepatitis C virus (HCV)-endemic areas are also endemic for hepatitis D virus (HDV), GBV-C and TT virus. This study aimed to elucidate the epidemiology of HDV and GBV-C infection in two neighboring HBV- and HCV-endemic villages, to deduce the epidemiological characteristics of multiple viral infections in communities. Subjects from W village were older than those from H village (61.7 +/- 11.8 vs 56.6 +/- 16.4 years, p = 0.02). The prevalence of ALT elevation (37.8% vs 15.8%, p = 0.006), anti-HCV (67.6% vs 34.7%, p < 0.0001), and GBV-C infection (39.2% vs 24.2%, p = 0.054), and the distribution of HCV genotype 1b (37.8% vs 70.4%, p = 0.01) were different in W and H villages, respectively. Among anti-HCV-positive subjects, HCV RNA-positive rates were 75.9% (63/83), and were higher for men (88.2%) than women (67.3%). Only one HBsAg-positive subject was positive for anti-HDV, and one anti-HCVnegative subject was positive for HCV RNA. In multivariate analyses, GBVC infection correlated with HCV infection or HCV endemicity, and HCV RNA was the only determining factor in ALT elevation.