Distribution of hepatitis B virus genotypes in two different pediatric populations from Argentina

MBAYED, V.; LÓPEZ, J.; TELENTA, F.; PALACIOS, G.; GALLOPO, C.; FERRO, A.; BADÍA, I.; CAMPOS, R.

JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY

American Society for Microbiology

Lugar: Washington; Año: 1998 vol. 36 p. 3362 - 3365

0095-1137

Differences in pathogenesis and the probability of becoming a chronic carrier depend on the age at whichhepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is acquired, ranging from 82% in infants less than 6 months of age to 15 to30% in older children. HBV genotypes from 22 pediatric patients from two areas that differ in prevalence havebeen determined. Phylogenetic analysis shows a clear difference between the genotype distribution in BuenosAires, a low-prevalence area, and that found in Gualeguay, Entre Rı´os, a high-prevalence area. While theanalysis allocated the sequences in the Buenos Aires group to genotypes A (36%), D (9%), and F (55%), theGualeguay group presented exclusively genotype A isolates with very low nucleotide divergence, which suggestsa strong founder viral population. The high prevalence of genotype F in the Buenos Aires group and its highintragroup heterogeneity agree with the American origin of this genotype.