Correlates of infection and molecular characterization of blood-borne HIV, HCV, and HBV infections in HIV-1 infected inmates in Italy

Abstract

Coinfection of blood-borne hepatitis B and hepatitis C viruses (HBV and HCV, respectively) in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-positive individuals frequently occurs in inmate population and peculiar viral strains and patterns of virological markers may be observed.Plasma from 69 HIV-1-positive inmates was obtained from 7 clinical centers connected with correctional centers in different towns in Italy. HIV, HBV, and HCV markers were tested by commercial assays. Virus genotyping was carried out by sequencing the protease and reverse transcriptase-encoding region (PR-RT region) for HIV and a region encompassing the NS5B gene for HCV and subsequent phylogenetic analysis.Twelve over 14 HIV-subtyped inmates were infected with HIV-1 subtype B strains. The 2 non-B strains belonged to subtype G and CRF02_AG, in an Italian and a Gambian patient, respectively. Variants carrying the K103N and Y181C resistance mutations to non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) were found in 2 out of 9 patients naive for combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) (22.2%). Most HIV-positive patients (92.8%) showed evidence of past or present HBV and/or HCV infection. Prevalence of HBV and HCV was 81.2% for both viruses, whereas prevalence of HBV/HCV coinfection was 69.6%. A significantly higher presence of HCV infection was found in Italians [odds ratio (OR) 11.0; interval 1.7–80.9] and in drug users (OR 27.8; interval 4.9–186.0). HCV subtypes were determined in 42 HCV or HBV/HCV-coinfected individuals. HCV subtypes 1a, 3a, 4d, and 1b were found in 42.9%, 40.5%, 14.3%, and 2.4% of inmates, respectively. Low titers of HBV DNA in HBV DNA positive subjects precluded HBV subtyping.The high prevalence of HBV and HCV coinfections in HIV-infected inmates, as well as the heterogeneity of HIV and HCV subtypes suggest the need to adopt systematic controls in prisons to monitor both the burden and the genetic forms of blood-borne viral infections, in order to apply targeted therapeutic interventions.

The global and regional prevalence of hepatitis C and B co-infections among prisoners living with HIV: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Of the 52 included studies, 48 were cross-sectional [ 6 , 7 , 9 , 19 – 31 , 33 , 35 – 59 , 61 – 66 ] and 4 were prospective cohort studies [ 10 , 32 , 34 , 60 ]. Of all, 50 studies reported HCV infection [ 6 , 7 , 9 , 10 , 19 – 63 , 65 ] and 23 studies reported either solely HBV infection or both HBV and HCV infections [ 19 , 21 , 25 , 28 , 32 , 34 – 37 , 41 , 43 – 46 , 52 , 54 – 56 , 58 , 60 , 64 – 66 ]. Regarding the study location, 21 studies were conducted in Europe [ 9 , 10 , 21 , 24 , 25 , 27 , 33 , 34 , 39 , 42 , 45 – 47 , 49 , 52 , 55 , 56 , 58 , 60 , 63 , 65 ], 18 were conducted in America [ 6 , 7 , 20 , 22 , 23 , 26 , 29 – 32 ,…”

“…Of all, 50 studies reported HCV infection [ 6 , 7 , 9 , 10 , 19 – 63 , 65 ] and 23 studies reported either solely HBV infection or both HBV and HCV infections [ 19 , 21 , 25 , 28 , 32 , 34 – 37 , 41 , 43 – 46 , 52 , 54 – 56 , 58 , 60 , 64 – 66 ]. Regarding the study location, 21 studies were conducted in Europe [ 9 , 10 , 21 , 24 , 25 , 27 , 33 , 34 , 39 , 42 , 45 – 47 , 49 , 52 , 55 , 56 , 58 , 60 , 63 , 65 ], 18 were conducted in America [ 6 , 7 , 20 , 22 , 23 , 26 , 29 – 32 , 37 , 38 , 50 , 57 , 59 , 61 , 62 , 66 ], 2 in South-East Asia [ 41 , 48 ], 7 in East Mediterranean [ 28 , 36 , 40 , 43 , 44 , <...>…”

“…Out of the 52 included studies [ 6 , 7 , 9 , 10 , 19 – 66 ], we found 17 studies [ 9 , 10 , 19 , 22 , 28 , 33 , 37 , 39 , 43 , 44 , 46 , 47 , 53 , 54 , 56 , 58 , 66 ] with high quality, 25 studies with medium quality [ 6 , 7 , 20 , 21 , 23 , 24 , 29 – 31 , 35 , 38 , 40 , 41 , 45 , 49 , 50 , 56 , 57 , 59 – 65 ], and 10 studies with low quality [ 25 – 27 , 32 , 34 , 36 , 42 , 48 , 51 , 52 ]…”

Factors associated with clearance of hepatitis B virus surface antigen in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus

“…In this study, we retrospectively examined HIV-infected patients and found that about 64.0% of them had been infected with HBV, which was lower than the rate reported from Italy showing that 81.2% of HIV-positive inmates had current or past HBV infection. [ 15 ] Most of these patients were seropositive only for HBcAb and seronegative for HBsAg, indicating that these patients were previously infected with HBV and had cleared HBsAg, indicating their “functional cure.” The number of patients who presented HBsAg-seropositive at least once in their clinical courses was 57, 7.9% among patients examined for HBV-related laboratory tests. This rate was a little bit higher than that reported by Phinius et al [ 16 ] showing 27 (6.2%) among 435 HIV-infected patients in Botswana experienced HBsAg-seropositive during 4-year period, possibly due to the difference in the observation period.…”

Progress and prospects of circular RNAs in Hepatocellular carcinoma: Novel insights into their function

“…In China, the incidence and mortality of liver diseases were rapidly increasing and the number of deaths caused by liver diseases were presented in the top 2 among all types of cancers in 2014 (Wang et al, ; Zhai et al, ). Most cases of liver diseases naturally originate from hepatitis, which is well known as a dynamic disease, commonly associated with infection/inflammation or cellular toxicity/injury factors, such as HBV and HCV (Sanarico et al, ). As the inflammation progresses, the conditions get worse and then probably develop into liver fibrosis.…”