Human pegivirus (HPgV, GBV-C) RNA prevalence, genome characterization and association with HIV coinfection among volunteer blood donors from a public hemotherapy service in Northern Brazil.

Abstract

BackgroundHuman pegivirus (HPgV) - formerly known as GBV-C - is a member of the Flaviviridae family and belongs to the species Pegivirus C. It is a non-pathogenic virus and is transmitted among humans mainly through the exposure to contaminated blood and is often associated with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of HPgV viremia, its association with HIV and clinical epidemiological factors, as well as the full-length sequencing and genome characterization of HPgV recovered from blood donors of the HEMOPA Foundation in Belém-PA-BrazilMethodsPlasma samples were obtained from 459 donors, tested for the presence of HPgV RNA by the RT-qPCR. From these, a total of 26 RT-qPCR positive samples were submitted to the NGS sequencing approach in order to obtain the full genome+. Genome characterization and phylogenetic analysis were conducted.ResultsThe prevalence of HPgV was 12.42%. We observed the highest prevalences among donors aged between 18 to 30 years old (16.5%), with brown skin color (13.2%) and men (15.8%). The newly diagnosed HIV-1 prevalence was 26.67%. The genotype 2 (2A and 2B) was identified. No data on viral load value was found to corroborate the protective effect of HPgV on HIV evolution.ConclusionsThis study provided information regarding the HPgV infection among blood donors from HEMOPA Foundation. Furthermore, we genetically characterized the HPgV circulating strains and described by the first time the genotype 2 genomes in the Brazilian Amazon region.