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13:04
A Protocol for Analyzing Hepatitis C Virus Replication
Published on: June 26, 2014
24.7K
Diversity of hepatitis E virus genotype 3.
Florence Nicot1, Nicolas Jeanne1, Alain Roulet2
1Centre National de Référence du virus de l'hépatite E, Laboratoire de Virologie, Hôpital Purpan, CHU de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
Reviews in Medical Virology
|June 26, 2018
Summary
Hepatitis E virus genotype 3 (HEV-3) subtypes show distinct polymerase gene mutations before treatment. These subtype-specific HEV-3 polymorphisms may impact ribavirin treatment outcomes in immunocompromised patients.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Genomics
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- Hepatitis E virus genotype 3 (HEV-3) can cause chronic infections in immunocompromised individuals.
- Ribavirin is the primary treatment for HEV-3, but treatment failure has been linked to polymerase gene mutations.
- The prevalence of these mutations across different HEV-3 subtypes before treatment remains understudied.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze phylogenetic relationships, polyproline region length, and polymerase gene mutations in a large dataset of HEV-3 genomes from French patients.
- To identify subtype-specific polymorphisms in the HEV-3 polymerase gene.
- To provide new complete HEV-3 genome sequences for comparative analysis between human and animal strains.
Main Methods:
- Sequencing of 115 complete HEV-3 genomes using single-molecule real-time technology.
- Phylogenetic analysis to classify HEV-3 strains into subtypes.
- Analysis of polyproline region length and mutations within the HEV polymerase gene.
Main Results:
- HEV-3 genomes were predominantly classified into HEV-3efg (74%) and HEV-3chi (24%) clades.
- Significant variation in polyproline region length was observed across HEV-3 clades (189–315 nt).
- Distinct subtype-specific polymorphisms were identified in the HEV-3 polymerase gene, including G1634R (HEV-3e), G1634K (HEV-3ra), and V1479I (HEV-3efg, HEV-3ra, HEV-3k).
Conclusions:
- Subtype-specific polymorphisms in the HEV-3 polymerase gene have been identified.
- These findings contribute novel HEV-3 genome sequences and highlight genetic variations relevant to treatment strategies.
- Understanding these pre-treatment polymorphisms is crucial for predicting ribavirin efficacy in HEV-3 infections.
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