HCV genotype analysis in HCV-HIV-co-infected Puerto Ricans who are injecting drug users: undetermined and mixed infections

Direct percutaneous exposure is the main route of HCV transmission. In Puerto Rico half of people infected with HIV use illicit drugs. The effects of HCV in the course of HIV infection and vice versa have been extensively studied, but remain highly controversial. This may be due to HCV genetic heter...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inCellular and molecular biology (Noisy-le-Grand, France) Vol. 47; no. 6; p. 1017
Main Authors Ríos-Olivares, E, Yamamura, Y, Gómez, M A, Guzmán, L, Rodríguez, N, Fernández, D, Hunter Mellado, R
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published France 01.09.2001
Subjects
Adult
CD4 Lymphocyte Count
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Gene Frequency
Genotype
Hepacivirus - genetics
Hepacivirus - isolation & purification
Hepatitis C - complications
Hepatitis C - immunology
Hepatitis C - virology
HIV Infections - complications
HIV Infections - virology
HIV-1
Humans
Male
Puerto Rico
RNA, Viral - blood
Substance Abuse, Intravenous - complications
Viral Load
Puerto Rico
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Summary:Direct percutaneous exposure is the main route of HCV transmission. In Puerto Rico half of people infected with HIV use illicit drugs. The effects of HCV in the course of HIV infection and vice versa have been extensively studied, but remain highly controversial. This may be due to HCV genetic heterogeneity. Therefore, a complex classification into genotypes has emerged that prompted us to determined how this impacts a population of intravenous drug users (IDUs) co-infected with HIV-1. Using Inno-LiPa II technique, we analyzed samples from 171 HCV-HIV-1-co-infected IDUs and 375 from a general HCV population of unknown HIV or source of infection status. Similar HCV genotype distribution was detected in these populations. HCV genotype 1a was the most frequently in IDUs-co-infected with HIV-1, followed by 1b and 3a. Twenty mixed infections and 5 undetermined genotypes were reported. A reduced HCV viral load was observed in HIV-1 positives with wasting syndrome. Individuals with a high HIV-1 viral load presented a low HCV viral load. There were no correlation between HCV genotypes and AIDS-related event. Patients with genotype 1b showed a higher HCV viral load. Males presented higher HCV viral load than females. Females were predominantly affected by genotype 1a, and men by 1a and 1b. Neither the HCV viral load nor the frequency of genotypes were influenced by the antiretroviral modality. The importance of continuous genotype monitoring is stressed.
ISSN:0145-5680