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Objective: The goal of this study was to examine the prevalence of anti-core+1 in “naive” patients with chronic hepatitis C and different stages of liver fibrosis infected by HCV subtypes 1b and 3a.Materials and methods: A total of 86 “naive” patients (37 men and 49 women) with CHC observed in the Botkin infectious disease hospital in 2017, were included in this study. The average age was 50,7±2,7. Laboratory tests included ALT and bilirubin. In 53 patients, the fibrosis stage in the liver tissue was evaluated by the TE method using Fibroscan (Echosens, France). The presence of antibodies to the core+1 protein in blood serum samples was determined by the “inhouse” indirect ELISA method using synthetic peptides F10 and F13, which amino acid sequences correspond to the antigenic determinants of core+1 protein of the HCV subtypes 1b and 3a, respectively.Results: In total, anti-core + 1 were detected in 27 (31,4%) subjects. It has been shown that the detection rate of anticore+1 does not depend on the HCV subtype. The study has indicated no statistically significant dependence between the presence of anti-core+1 and biochemical activity es of the infectious process (ALT, bilirubin). Anti-core+1 were detected in patients with all stages of fibrosis, however, the detection rate of anti-core+1 was statistically higher in patients with stage F4 fibrosis than in patients without liver fibrosis.Conclusion: The obtained results suggest a possible role of the core+1 protein in the development of fibrosis. In the natural course of HCV infection, the detection of anti-core+1 can be considered as a prognostic marker for the progression of fibrosis in the liver tissue.

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Vietnam is an endemic territory of the South-East Asia in terms of the prevalence of hepatitis E virus. However, the data on the prevalence of HEV infection among the indigenous population of Vietnam are limited, whereas the data on various minor ethnic groups are not available. Рopulation of the Northern province Hà Giang is characterized by ethnic diversity and consists of about 22 ethnic groups that have preserved their ethnic identity determining the features of their lifestyle and farming. The goal of the current study was to conduct a cross-sectional examination to assess prevalence of serological markers of HEV infection in the indigenous population of the Northern province of Vietnam, Hà Giang. Materials and methods. A total of 1127 healthy indigenous residents aged 18 to 83 years (average age 42.8±1.5) who lived in three regions (Yên Minh, Bắc Mê and Đông Văn) of Hà Giang province in 2019 were enrolled in the study. The presence of HEV-specific IgG antibodies (anti-HEV IgG) was determined by the ELISA using kits “DS-IFA-ANTI-HEV-G” (LLC NPO “Diagnostic Systems”, Russia). Results. The prevalence of anti-HEV IgG antibodies in the indigenous population in the Hà Giang province was 74.4% (838/1127; 95% CI 71.7–76.8), with the peak occurrence of anti-HEV IgG (87.6%) found in Đông Văn region, which was significantly higher compared to those in the Bắc Mê (χ2 = 16.37, p = 0.000052) and Yên Minh (χ2 = 214.64, p < 0.00001) regions. The Yên Minh Region was characterized by the lowest percentage of subjects involved in the epidemic process (χ2 = 77.55, p < 0.00001). No significant gender-related differences were detected in antiHEV IgG level both in general and in individual regions. The peak frequency of anti-HEV IgG (85.9%) was found in the H’mong ethnic group, which was significantly higher than in the Tay ethnic groups (χ2 = 77.32, p < 0.00001) and in the remaining minor ethnic groups (χ2 = 63.44, p < 0.00001). Conclusion. The results of this study indicate a high seroprevalence of hepatitis E virus in the minor ethnic groups, which preserve the national lifestyle in the Hà Giang province of the Northern Vietnam. As the Hà Giang province is located in remote mountain areas, a number of which are still difficult to access, its low economic status, poor sanitary and hygienic living conditions, lack of high-quality water supply, multinational population following different lifestyles, the contact of population with natural potential sources of HEV infection, including various wild and domestic animals, contribute to the successful spread of the hepatitis E virus in the region and the involvement of all populational age groups in the epidemic process. Taking into account the rapid development of the tourism industry in the Hà Giang Province particularly in the Đông Văn Region, where the Đông Văn Karst Plateau Geopark being recognized by UNESCO as national treasure is located, the results of this study emphasize a need to plan and perform the events aimed for preventing and monitoring HEV infection in endemic regions in Vietnam in order to reduce a risk of spread of hepatitis E virus not only inside, but also outside the country.

Hepatitis B (HBV), C (HCV), and D (HDV) are common infectious diseases that cause serious health consequences and lead to death due to dangerous complications such as acute liver failure, cirrhosis, and liver cancer. According to The World Health Organization estimates, there were about 354 cases of chronic HBV and HCV infection in 2019. Vietnam is a country that has high rates of HBV infection and an estimated 8.6 million people are infected with HBV. In this study, we identified the prevalence rates of HBV, HCV, and HDV in 1248 serum samples collected from healthy among young adults aged 18 to 29 years old (mean age: 20.3 ± 1, 4) in Thai Nguyen and Da Nang in 2018 by ELISA. We also identified the HBV genotype in HBV-DNA-positive samples, sequenced the preS/S gene, and analyzed the phylogenetic tree. The study result showed that the detection rate of HBsAg antigen is 3.5% and total anti-HBc is 24.9%, the detection rate of anti-HCV is low and the anti-HDV is not decided in the cohort of (18-29 years old) young adults in Thai Nguyen and Da Nang. The phylogenetic analysis showed there is a circulating of genotype B and genotype C. The rate of HBV belonging to the B4 subtype is 78.9% and belonging to the C1 subtype is only 21.1%. 15/19 samples of recombinant HBV detected is the genotype B4/C. The rare mutant G145K belonging to a vaccine escape mutation is identified in one of the HBV samples in Thai Nguyen; the core promoter double mutation A1762T/G1762A are identified in one of the HBV sample; and only one mutation A1762T is identified in one of the HBV sample.

Phylogeographical and philodinamic studies have shown that the hepatitis C virus began to circulate in the human population about 500-2000 years ago on the African continent and only in the 20 th century, this virus received the ubiquitary distribution. According to WHO in the world more than 71 million people are chronically infected by the hepatitis C virus, more than half of them live in Africa and South-East Asia. At the same time, the actual prevalence of hepatitis C in most countries of sub-Saharan Africa, including the Republic of Guinea, remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was to evaluate the occurrence of serological and molecular markers of hepatitis C on a random small selection of blood samples obtained from healthy adults of the Republic of Guinea. Materials and methods. Serum and plasma blood samples obtained from thirty one healthy adults of 24-71 years old of the Republic of Guinea were examined. Blood samples were collected in 2015-2016 years. The serum samples were analyzed for the presence of total anti-HCV (IgG+IgM), of specific antibodies to the core, the NS3, the NS4 and the NS5B HCV proteins, of core antigene with "DS-ELISA-ANTI-HCV-GM", "DS-ELISA-ANTI-HCV-SPEKTRE-GM", "DS-ELISA-HCV-Ag" detection kits (RPC "Diagnostic Systems", Russia), respectively. RNA HCV were detected by RT-PCR with detection kit "AmpliSens HCV-FRT" (CRIE, Moscow) and by nested-PCR using the primers from 5'UTR region. HCV genotypes were determined by RT-PCR with detection kit "AmpliSens HCV-genotype FRT" (CRIE, Moscow) and by phylogenetic analysis based on the 5'UTR region. Results and discussion. In this pilot study, the presence of HCV markers was confirmed in 3 (9.68%, 95% CI 3.35-24.90) of 31 examined persons. Two of them had RNA HCV. Based on the phylogenetic analysis of the 5'UTR region of the HCV genome, the isolate obtained from person No. 5 belonged to genotype 1, and the isolate obtained from person No. 6 belonged to genotype 2. The obtained results together with the analyzed literature data indicate a significant burden of hepatitis C in the Republic of Guinea, and also indicate the need to develop both an algorithm of diagnostic criteria and the improvement of diagnostic test systems for mass screening of the African population in order to establish the proportion of persons involved in epidemic process.