Mother-to-Child Transmission of Hepatitis C Virus Detected by Nested Polymerase Chain Reaction

• Published in: The Journal of infectious diseases Vol. 165; no. 4; pp. 720 - 723
• Main Authors: Novati, Roberto, Thiers, Valerie, d'Arminio Monforte, Antonella, Maisonneuve, Pascale, Principi, Nicola, Conti, Mario, Lazzarin, Adriano, Brechot, Christian
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chicago, IL The University of Chicago Press 01.04.1992; University of Chicago Press
• Subjects: AIDS/HIV; Antibodies; Base Sequence; Biological and medical sciences; Concise Communications; Disease transmission; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Hepacivirus; Hepacivirus - genetics; Hepacivirus - isolation & purification; Hepatitis C - diagnosis; Hepatitis C - transmission; HIV; Humans; Immunoblotting; Infant, Newborn; Infants; Infections; Infectious diseases; Maternal-Fetal Exchange; Medical sciences; Molecular Sequence Data; Nucleic Acid Hybridization; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Complications, Infectious; RNA; RNA Probes - chemistry; RNA, Viral - analysis; RNA, Viral - chemistry; Viral diseases; Viremia; Viremia - diagnosis; Viremia - transmission; Women; Human; Transmission; Medical screening; In vitro; Infection; Pregnancy; Polymerase chain reaction; Non A non B viral hepatitis; Mother; Viral disease; Molecular biology; Detection; Child
• ISSN: 0022-1899; 1537-6613
• DOI: 10.1093/infdis/165.4.720

Serum samples from eight pregnant women and their offspring were studied by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for detection of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA to evaluate mother-tochild transmission of this virus. The mothers were all infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV); none showed symptoms ofHCV infection. Anti-HCV antibodies were tested for by recombinant immunoblot assay. HCV viral sequences were found in five of the mothers and four of eight children, three of them at birth. Viremia was persistent in one infant who had chronic transaminase elevation and persistently remained anti-HCV-positive. The other three babies had intermittent viremia; all were asymptomatic and lost anti-HCV antibodies during follow-up. This loss of antibodies was also observed in PCR-negative infants. Thus, these results demonstrate transmission of HCV from mother to child by women coinfected with HCV and HIV. They indicate the usefulness of PCR for direct and early detection of HCV viremia in neonates.