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doi:10.3748/wjg.14.4725

World J Gastroenterol 2008 August 14; 14(30): 4725-4734

World Journal of Gastroenterology ISSN 1007-9327
2008 The WJG Press. All rights reserved.

EDITORIAL

Hepatitis G virus

Vasiliy Ivanovich Reshetnyak, Tatiana Igorevna Karlovich, Ljudmila Urievna Ilchenko

Vasiliy Ivanovich Reshetnyak, Scientific Research Institute of
General Reanimatology, Russia Academy of Medical Sciences,
Moscow 107031, Russia
Tatiana Igorevna Karlovich, Ljudmila Urievna Ilchenko,
M.P. Chumakov Institute of Poliomyelitis and Viral
Encephalitides, Russia Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow
142782, Russia
Author contributions: Reshetnyak VI, Karlovich TI, Ilchenko
LU contributed equally to this work.
Correspondence to: Vasiliy Ivanovich Reshetnyak, Scientific
Research Institute of General Reanimatology, Petrovka str.
25-2, Moscow 107031, Russia. v_reshetnyak@yahoo.com
Telephone: +7-495-6946505 Fax: +7-495-6946505
Received: February 20, 2008 Revised: May 10, 2008
Accepted: May 17, 2008
Published online: August 14, 2008

Abstract
A number of new hepatitis viruses (G, TT, SEN) were
discovered late in the past century. We review the
data available in the literature and our own findings
suggesting that the new hepatitis G virus (HGV),
disclosed in the late 1990s, has been rather well
studied. Analysis of many studies dealing with HGV
mainly suggests the lymphotropicity of this virus. HGV
or GBV-C has been ascertained to influence course
and prognosis in the HIV-infected patient. Until now,
the frequent presence of GBV-C in coinfections,
hematological diseases, and biliary pathology gives
no grounds to determine it as an accidental tourist
that is of no significance. The similarity in properties of
GBV-C and hepatitis C virus (HCV) offers the possibility
of using HGV, and its induced experimental infection,
as a model to study hepatitis C and to develop a
hepatitis C vaccine.
2008 The WJG Press. All rights reserved.

Key words: Hepatitis G virus; Markers of GBV-C;

Epidemiology; Clinical manifestations
Peer reviewers: Mario U Mondelli, Professor, Department

Infectious Diseases, Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo

and University of Pavia, Laboratori Area Infettivologica,
Dipartimento di Malattie Infettive, Fondazione IRCCS
Policlinico San Matteo, via Taramelli 5, Pavia 27100, Italy;
Vasiliy I Reshetnyak, MD, PhD, Professor, Scientist Secretary
of the Scientific Research Institute of General Reanimatology,
25-2, Petrovka str. 107031, Moscow, Russia
Reshetnyak VI, Karlovich TI, Ilchenko LU. Hepatitis G virus.

World J Gastroenterol 2008; 14(30): 4725-4734 Available

from: URL: http://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/14/4725.asp
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3748/wjg.14.4725

History of the discovery of

hepatitis G virus
GBV-C, or hepatitis G virus (HGV), was discovered by
two independent groups of investigators in the study of
cases of hepatitis non-A, non-B, non-E[1,2]. The discovery
of a new viral agent associated with liver diseases has
attracted considerable attention due to the fact that there
are hepatitides of unknown etiology. This determined
the urgency of investigations aimed at comprehensively
studying the properties of the virus, its association with
liver disease and infection rates in different countries of
the world.
In 1966, the 34-year-old surgeon G. Barker (GB) fell
ill with acute hepatitis of moderate enzymatic activity and
three-week icteric period. Patient blood taken on icteric
day 3 was used for intravenous inoculation of nonhuman
primates (bare-faced marmosets, the Callithricidae
family). Hepatitis was recorded in all animals when four
monkey-to-monkey passages were performed. The
findings suggested that the cause of this hepatitis was a
yet unidentified viral agent that was named GBV.
Investigations of the GB agent recommenced
25 years later when new methods for qualitative viral
analysis and recognition evolved. Serum taken in the
acute stage of hepatitis from infected marmosets
was found to contain two viral genomes: GBV-A and
GBV-B belonging to closely-related viruses of the
Flaviviridae family. Both viruses were able to replicate
in the marmosets, but only GBV-B caused hepatitis.
Attempts to detect GBV-A or GBV-B in human beings
failed. A third virus GBV-C was soon isolated from
patient material by means of specially designed primers
to the conserved part of the NS3 region of the viruses
GBV-A, GBV-B and HCV. GBV-C was assigned to the
GBV group as it was slightly similar to GBV-B protein
in immunoassays and largely identical to GBV-A in
nucleotide sequence. GBV-C proved to be genetically
related to another independent isolate that had been
originally called HGV. They are virtually indistinguishable
in the routine diagnosis by polymerase chain reaction
(PCR). Since the signs of GBV-C/HGV became more
commonly detected in patients with hepatitis and persons
at risk for parenteral hepatitis, hepatitis G was considered
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GBV-B

Volume 14

Number 30

9392 nucleotides (ORF-2873 aa)

Genes
458
5'

HGV
GBV-C

1a
1b

Proteins (x
103 daltons)

E1

E2

NS2
ab

NS3

20

70

NS4 NS5a
ab
28

55

NS5b

3'

57

Function Coat proteins Protease Protease/ NS3

RNA-dependent
UTR
Helicase Cofactor? RNA polymerase UTR

HCV

315

GBV-A
2a

2b

Figure 1 Affinity of HCV, GBV-C, GBV-A, and GBV-B (From Robertson BH,
2001)[5].

to be an independent hepatotropic entity.

Experiments infecting chimpanzees with the GBV-C
RNA-containing plasma taken from patients with chronic
hepatitis G (CHG) yielded rather unexpected results. All
the infected animals developed persistent and continuing
(as long as 20 mo) viremia. However, no case showed
a rise in the levels of indicator enzymes or detectable
abnormal liver tissue changes in liver biopsy specimens
taken weekly throughout the follow-up. Javan macaques
were also observed to have viremia without signs of liver
damage. By contrast, signs of hepatitis in the form of
hyperenzymaemia and necrotic and inflammatory changes
in the liver appeared by day 30 after inoculation of the
marmosets that had received the same GBV-C-containing
materials[3].
Further serological screening-based investigations
have indicated that the GBV-C isolate is of widespread
occurrence; however, there is no evidence for an
association of viremia with the development of some
known diseases, such as hepatitis[4].

Taxonomy and genotypic variety

of GBV-C
GBV-C virus, like GBV-A, GBV-B, and HCV, belongs to
the Flaviviridae family. Comparison of the genomes of
GBV-C, GBV-A, GBV-B, and HGV has demonstrated
that their RNA does not bear a more than 32% similarity,
thereby supporting the hypothesis that these viruses are
independent (Figure 1)[5].
Five HGV genomes (the divergence between them
was 12%) have been described[6,7]. Investigations dealing
with the classification of GBV-C were conducted by
measuring restriction fragment length polymorphisms.
The isolates from West Africa are referred to as
genotype 1 wherein 2 subtypes: 1a and 1b are identified.
Genotypes 2a and 2b are more frequently detected in
North America and Europe; genotypes 3, 4 and 5 are
more common in Asia, South-Eastern Asia, and South
Africa, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis of genomic
nucleotide sequences of the 5' and NS5 regions made
by Novikov in 2000[8] has established that the GBV-C
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Figure 2 Schematic representation of GBV-C RNA structure, coded proteins,

and their functions (from Kim JP, Frey KE)[14].

isolate belonging to viral genotype 2 circulates in Russia,

Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan. Analysis
of GBV-C 5'-untranslated region sequences revealed a
new sixth genotype of virus in Indonesia[9]. In addition
to genomic variability in different GBV-C isolates, some
authors propose GBV-C genomic variability within
one isolate, i.e. they suggest that there are quasispecies,
thereby emphasizing their similarity with HCV[10]. But,
the opponents of this theory argue that based on the
absence of a hypervariable region in the E2 gene, the
presence of quasispecies is impossible[11,12].

GBV-C structure
The genome of the virus is represented by singlechain RNA with positive polarity [13] . The GBV-C
genome is similar to hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA in
its organization, i.e. the structural genes are located at
the genomic 5' region and non-structural genes are at
the 3' end (Figure 2)[14]. The untranslated region at the
5' end may serve as an internal ribosomal embarkation
site, which ensures translation of a RNA coding
region[15]. The extent of the genome in different viral
isolates ranges from 9103 to 9392 nucleotides[16,17]. An
open reading frame carries information on the virusspecific polypeptide consisting of 2873-2910 amino acid
residues. GBV-C RNA codes for two structural proteins
(E1 and E2) which are envelope proteins. Unlike HCV,
the proportion of glycosylated E2 is much lower in
GBV-C. It has a total of three potential N-glycosylation
sites as compared with HCV E2, which has eleven sites.
The complete structure of viral nucleocapsid is still to
be determined as the genomic region coding for core
proteins has not been identified yet[18].
Five non-structural proteins: NS2, NS3, NS4b, NS5a,
and NS5b with molecular weights of 20, 70, 28, 55,
and 57 kDa, respectively, have been found[19,20]. These
proteins perform the function of protease, helicase, and
RNA-dependent RNA-polymerase. The sequencing
of the E1 and E2 regions has shown that they are not
hypervariable unlike the respective regions of HCV[12].
Of interest are the data obtained while studying the
buoyant density of GBV-C particles in a saccharose
gradient before and after treatment with the nonionic
detergent Tween-80. These data suggest that there is a
lipid envelope in the virus whose association with lipids
reduces antibody formation.

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4727

Table 1 Detection rate of GBV-C RNA in blood donors

Table 2 Detection rate of anti-E2 in blood donors

Authors, year, country

Authors, year, country

Jarvis et al, 1996, United Kingdom[33]

Alter et al, 1997, USA[34]
Mikhailov, 1997, Russia[11]
de Lamballerie et al, 1997, Belgium[35]
Lefrere et al, 1997, France[36]
Guilera et al, 1998, Spain[37]
Masuko et al, 1996, Japan[38]
Novikov, 2000, Russia[8]
Kalkan et al, 2005, Turkey[39]
Mastouri et al, 2005, Tunis[40]
Grabarczyk et al, 2006, Poland[41]

GBV-C RNA (%)

3.2
1.7
3.3
1.1
4.2
3.0
0.9
3.2
4.1
5.3
3.2

Markers of GBV-C
The basic marker used to diagnose GBV-C is RNA
that is detectable by the amplification technique with
a preliminary stage of reverse transcription in which
cDNA is synthesized [reverse-transcriptase polymerase
chain reaction (RT-PCR)]. Data on the sequence of the
RNA region coding for helicase (NS3) and the NS5A
region are used to synthesize oligonucleotide primers.
This choice is made due to the high (83%-99%) stability
of this region in various viral isolates (the sensitivity was
as high as 200 copies/mL).
Further investigations indicated that there might
be false negative results in the testing of some samples
despite the fact that the latter contained the virus. By
taking this into account, primers with the information
coded in the 5'-untranslated region (the sensitivity was
as high as 100 copies/mL) came into additional use for
the designing of diagnostic kits[10]. The above primer
kits had a high sensitivity, but also a rather high level of
errors due to the incomplete conservatism of respective
viral RNA regions.
An alternate primer kit for the region coding for E2
has been developed. These primers had 100% specificity
for this RNA region; however, their sensitivity was not
greater than 76.6%. Recent investigations propose the
use of the two different primer kits (for viral RNA NS3,
NS5A, 5'UTR, or E2 regions) for the accurate diagnosis
of GBV-C RN[21].
GBV-C RNA has been detected in hepatocytes[19,20,22],
peripheral blood lymphocytes and monocytes [23,24],
vascular endothelial cells[25], and other tissues[7]. GBV-C
viremia may persist for a few years. The infection is
accompanied by the formation of specific antibodies
against the envelope protein E2 (anti-E2). These
antibodies have a long survival and may prevent the
body from reinfection.
An enzyme immunoassay has been developed to
detect serum GBV-C antibodies. The envelope E2
antigen (glycoprotein) was used as a viral antigen.
Analysis of the sera from healthy individuals and
patients with hepatitis demonstrated that most antiE2-positive sera were GBV-C RNA negative, which
enabled anti-E2 to be regarded as a marker of previous
infection[8,26-28]. As a rule, GBV-C antibodies and RNA
are not simultaneously encountered in a patient despite
the fact that HCV, the nearest relation of GBV-C, is

Jarvis et al, 1996, United Kingdom[33]

Masuko et al, 1996, Japan[38]
Bouchardeau et al, 2000, France[45]
Novikov, 2000, Russia[8]
Mastouri et al, 2005, Tunis[40]
Grabarczyk et al, 2006, Poland[41]

Anti-E2 (%)
3.0
4.9
42.1
13.7
4.9
23.6

typified by this an inverse correlation between anti-E2

and viremia. The presence of serum viral RNA is also
indicative of continuing infection so is that of E2
protein antibodies for clearance of viral particles from
the patients body. It has been shown that the production
of GBV-C antibodies and the cessation of viremia in
most (60%-75%) immunocompetent patients occur
spontaneously and they are followed by the generation
of antibodies to the envelope protein E2 [29,30]. Two
markers (RNA and anti-E2) of GBV-C have been
concurrently detected in single studies (in 5% of cases)[8].
The highest detection rates of GBV-C antibodies are
observed in individuals aged above 50 years[31,32].

Epidemiology of GBV-C
Infection with HGV is common in the world. The
detection rate of GBV-C in the population averages 1.7%.
GBV-C, like other parenteral hepatitide viruses, occurs
universally, but nonuniformly (Table 1)[8,11,33-41].GBV-C is
detectable in all ethnic groups. Analysis of the results of
examining 13610 blood donors described in 30 reports
revealed viral RNA in 649 (4.8%) of cases. These included
Caucasians (4.5%), Asians (3.4%), and Africans (17.2%)[42].
The authors propose to test blood samples due to the
high risk of infection with GBV-C[42,43].
An investigation of the prevalence of HGV among
north-eastern Thai blood donors carrying HBsAg
and anti-HCV revealed the high frequency of GBV-C
RNA (10% and 11%, respectively) in the co-infected as
compared with the controls (0%)[44].
The development of an anti-E2 detection method
has promoted a complete definition of the prevalence
of GBV-C. E2 antibodies are several times more
frequently detectable than RNA in blood donors
(Table 2)[8,33,38,40,41,45].
GBV-C is a parenterally transmitted infection[28-30].
The first verification of this fact were the experiments
dealing with inoculation of primates with the blood
of the surgeon who fell ill in 1966[2]. Cases of acute
posttransfusion hepatitis along with the enhanced
activity of serum aminotransferases and the detection
of blood GBV-C RNA in the absence of other markers
of viral hepatitides has been documented[3,31,32]. Indirect
evidence that HGB is parenterally transmitted lies in
its more frequent detection in the groups at higher risk
for infection with hepatitis viruses by similar routes
of transmission (Table 3)[8,11,34,36,38,41,46-51], as well as the
increased risk for infection in patients treated with
multiple hemodialysis procedures and higher units of
transfused blood products[33-35].
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Table 3 Detection rate of HGV RNA in high infection-risk groups

Authors, year, country

Risk group

Mazuko et al, 1996, Indonesia[38]

Alter et al, 1997, USA[34]
Miklhailov, 1997, Russia[11]
Karayiannis et al, 1997, United Kingdom[46]

Patients on hemodialysis
Patients on hemodialysis
Drug abusers
Patients with hemophilia
Recipients of immunoglobulins
Drug abusers
Patients on hemodialysis
Patients on hemodialysis
Renal or hepatic posttransplantation patients
Patients on hemodialysis
Patients on hemodialysis
Patients on hemodialysis
Patients on intravenous drug injection
Patients with hemophilia
Patients on hemodialysis
Drug abusers
Patients on hemodialysis

Martin et al, 1999, USA[47]

Rubio et al, 1997, Germany[48]

Lefrere et al, 1997, France[36]

Miyakawa et al, 1997, Japan[49]
Novikov, 2000, Russia[8]
Kumar et al, 2005, India[50]
Kachko et al, 2005, Russia[51]
Grabarczyk et al, 2006, Poland[41]

The use of infected blood and its products promotes

the prevalence of HGV. In the USA, 18%-20% of all
blood preparations are infected with GBV-C, of them
plasma being in 33%-84%[33]. In the United Kingdom,
94%-100% of coagulation factor - preparations
are infected with this virus[34]. Despite the fact that this
persistent infection is present in a considerable number
of healthy blood donors and in more than 35% of
the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected,
the world food and drug administration considers it
unnecessary to recommend donor blood to be tested for
serum GBV-C RNA.
There may be a sexual transmission in hepatitis G,
as in hepatitis B and C. This is evidenced by the high
detection rate of GBV-C RNA in homosexuals and
prostitutes: 13.4%-63.0% [48,52] and 13.9%-24.8% [48,53],
respectively. Yeo et al [54] studied sexual transmission
risk in 161 hemophilic patients. 21% of the females in
sexual contact with them were found to be GBV-C RNA
seropositive. The more frequent detection of markers
of GBV-C in persons at increased risk for sexually
transmitted diseases is also indirect evidence for its
sexual transmission. Wachtler et al[31] revealed HGV RNA
in 27% and anti-E2 in 35% of the HIV-infected, while
in the control group these were 2% and 6%, respectively.
The vertical transmission of GBV-C from infected
mother to infant may now be considered proven[36,55-57].
There may be intranatal infection of a baby at delivery
by the maternal passage, as confirmed by the data on a
significant reduction in the infection rates of neonates
after cesarean section of their mothers[55]. There is also
postnatal GBV-C infection. On examining 288 mothers,
Lefrere et al revealed that 89% of the GBV-C-positive
babies were infected at 3 mo after birth[36].
The level of viremia is a factor that is of importance
in the transmission of the virus. By following up 24 babies
born to mothers with a GBV-C RNA level of more than
106 copies/mL, Ohto et al revealed GBV-C in 23 (96%)
of them. The viremia index in the mothers whose babies
proved to be infected was significantly higher than that in
those whose babies were seronegative (P < 0.001). Most
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GBV-C RNA (%)

55
20
35
14
5.4
13.5
17.1
5
14-20
5
57.5
3.1
16
28
6
25
23.7

babies had no clinical or biochemical signs of liver disease

despite one-year HGV persistence[58]. In the opinion of
Wejstal et al, the vertical transmission of GBV-C amounts
to 75%-80% of cases and that of HCV is 2.8%-4.2%
(P < 0.001)[56]. The frequent maternal-infant transmission
of GBV-C may account for the high prevalence of the
virus among the adult population at low risk of parenteral
and sexual transmissions. The detection of GBV-C
increases with age. HGV was detectable in 9% and 28.6%
of the children under 15 years and above 16 years of age,
respectively[59].

GBV-C tropism
GBV-C predominantly replicates in peripheral blood
mononuclear cells, mainly in B and T (CD4+ and CD8+)
lymphocytes and bone marrow[23-25,60]. The mechanism
responsible for the development of GBV-C-induced
hepatitis is not clear so far. Despite the described cases of
acute and chronic hepatitis G, its hepatotropicity remains
controversial. Table 4[11,27,28,61-74] shows data that both
confirm and rule out viral tropism to liver tissue.
Viral hepatotropicity is supported by the detection of
GBV-C RNA in hepatocytes and by the development of
acute and fulminant hepatitis following the transfusion
of infected blood and its products. Lang et al reported
interesting data on the immunohistochemical detection
of GBV-C NS5 Ag in the liver biopsy specimens taken
from patients with various liver diseases[68]. Like RNAcontaining HCV, GBV-C does not integrate into the
genome of an infected cell, but it is located in its
cytoplasm and the positive cells are diffusely arranged.
The indirect evidence for the liver tissue GBV-C
replication is a considerable reduction in the serum
content of viral RNA after liver transplantation (12.4
3.9 107 copies/mL vs 2.8 0.7 107 copies/mL)[69].
Primary replication of HGV in the hepatocytes
has been questioned. Thus, the level of GBV-C RNA
in the serum was higher than that in the liver tissue
(there is an inverse correlation for HCV). In a third
of serum-positive patients, RNA was undetectable in

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Table 4 Data on the hepatotropicity of GBV-C

Hepatotropicity

No hepatotropicity

Detection of GBV-C RNA in the sera of patients with

acute hepatitis non-A-non-E[61-66]

The equal detection rate of GBV-C RNA in donors with

normal and increased alanine aminotransferase activities
(1.7 and 1.5%, respectively)[70]
Normal aminotransferase activity values in the presence
of GBV-C RNA[11,71]
No correlation between the level of GBV-C RNA and
the activity of alanine aminotransferase[72]
The level of GBV-C RNA in the liver tissue is lower than
that in the serum[73,74]

Histological pattern of hepatitis in

GBV-C infection[27,28,66,67]
Detection of GBV-C RNA and NS5 Ag in the liver tissue[68]
A significant reduction in the serum level of GBV-C
RNA after liver transplantation[69]

the hepatocytes despite the fact that tissue had been

repeatedly taken from different lobes of the liver[73]. A
study of liver biopsy specimens from 12 GBV-C-positive
patients revealed no RNA minus strand responsible
for replication and a RNA plus strand only in half
the patients with low titers, which may be indicative of
GBV-C contamination from blood. Laskus et al reported
similar results investigating liver tissue and sera from 10
patients co-infected with HCV and GBV-C[74].
After establishing that the hepatotropicity of GBV-C
was low, the next stage of elucidating the pathogenicity
of the virus was to study its tropism to other tissues.
Handa et al determined the presence of a RNA-minus
strand in the vascular endotheliocytes[25]. In the authors
opinion, isolation of GBV-C RNA from a liver biopsy
specimen may reflect viral replication in the endothelium
of the vessels located in the liver[25]. Tucker et al reported
the detection of RNA plus strands in all 23 study
organs taken for analysis from GBV-C-infected patients
who had suddenly died[7]. However, both RNA strands
were found only in the spleen and bone marrow.
The comparison of nucleotide sequences in the E2region and the lack of occurrence of mutant viral forms
during antiviral therapy with interferons suggested
that the mechanisms that are responsible for persistent
infection are different from those for HCV. Thus, during
2-year follow-up, the average amino acid sequence
replacement in the E2-region was 100 times lower in
GBV-C than in HCV[75]. Investigations indicated that
viremia in GBV-C-infected patients was low and equal to
103-104 copies/mL[76]. It has been suggested that the viral
particles that are present in the blood use low-density
lipoprotein receptors for penetration into the target cell
and generate lipid complexes similar to those seen for
HCV particles. An experiment was made on cultured
peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC)[60,77].
GBV-C may replicate in PBMC and interferonresistant Daudi cells[60]. Experiments were carried out
to inoculate human PBMC lines and hepatocytes with
GBV-C RNA in vitro. The same lines were infected with
HCV as a control. These experiments demonstrated that
GBV-C replicates only in CD4+ cells[60,78]. Studies of
cells from different organs of GBV-C-infected patients
were conducted in parallel. They also detected traces of
RNA minus strand virus. Thus, the in vitro and in vivo
studies provide evidence that PBMC are the primary site
of GBV-C replication.
The contribution of not only the immune system,

but also genetic predisposition to prolonged viral

circulation is sug gested. HLA typing in GBV-Cinfected patients with hemophilia showed that 22% of
the RNA-positive patients and 72% of the anti-E2positive patients had HLA DQ7, HLA DR15 and HLA
DR8. There is also evidence for low content of CD4+
and the high level of CD8+ lymphocytes in anti-E2positive patients, which makes it possible to predict
GBV-C clearance[79].
HGV replication in peripheral blood monocytes
and lymphocytes, and the spleen and bone marrow,
combined with long viral persistence suggest that
GBV-C replicates predominantly in the hematopoietic
system. On examining 44 patients with non-Hodgkins
lymphoma, African et al revealed markers of HCV
infection in 5% of cases[80]. None of them was found to
have HGV RNA. However, meta-analysis of 178 cases
of non-Hodgkins lymphoma and 355 healthy volunteers
indicated GBV-C RNA in 8.4% (15/176) and 0.8%
(3/355) of the examinees, respectively, which points
to the high risk of HGV in patients with lymphoma[81].
There is evidence for the frequent detection of GBV-C
RNA in patients with leukemia as compared to those
with myeloproliferative diseases[82]. Crespo et al reported
the development of aplastic anemia in a 24-year-old male
patient with acute hepatitis G[83]. Frequent transfusions
in these patients may be one of the causes of HGV
infection.
There are higher detection rates of GBV-C RNA
(11%) and anti-E2 (17%) in autoimmune hepatitis than
in the control group (2%)[84]. Heringlake et al revealed
serum GBV-C RNA in 6.7%, 10.0% and 12.5% of the
patients with types , and autoimmune hepatitis,
respectively[85]. GBV-C is typified by a long-term (as long
as 16 years) persistence in human blood[86].

Clinical manifestations of GBV-C

The clinical picture of GBV-C infection is commonly
similar to that of the subclinical and anicteric types
of hepatitis with normal or low aminotransferase
a c t iv i t i e s [ 87] . G B V- C - a s s o c i a t e d h e p a t i t i s r un s
with nor mal biochemical parameters in 75% of
patients[80]. There are reports on the occurrence of acute
(Table 5) [62-65,88,89], fulminant [61,90,91] and chronic (mild
and moderate)[32,76,92,93] hepatitis and hepatic fibrosis[27,86].
Some authors note the younger age of the GBV-Cinfected [28,37,93]. The incubation period of acute viral
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Table 5 Detection rate of GBV-C RNA in acute nonA-nonE

hepatitis
Authors, year, country
Alter et al, 1997,
United Kingdom[62]
Romano et al, 2000, Italy[63]
Chu et al, 1999, Taiwan, China[64]
Parana et al, 1999, Brazilia[65]
Yashina et al, 1997, USA[88]
Uchaikin et al, 2000, Russia[89]

Number of patients GBV-C RNA (%)

45

9.0

98
53
25
28
35

3.1
3.0
16
3.6
5.7

hepatitis G averages 14-20 d. The outcome of acute

hepatitis may be: (1) recovery with the disappearance
of serum GBV-C RNA and the emergence of anti-E2;
(2) development of chronic hepatitis (CH) with serum
GBV-C RNA being persistently detectable; (3) presence
of GBV-C RNA without biochemical or histological
signs of liver disease.
The alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activity in
GBV-C unlike HCV, does not correspond to the degree
of viremia and the severity of hepatic histological
changes. By examining 1075 patients with isolated
hypertransaminasemia for 6 mo, Berasain et al revealed
GBV-C RNA in 74 (6.9%) patients[94]. Only one (0.09%)
patient was monoinfected. There is also evidence for twofold increases in the activity of alkaline phosphatase (AP)
and -glutamyl transpeptidase (-GTP) in GBV-C
positive patients[95].

Histological changes
Fibrosis of the portal tract without lymphoid-cell
infiltration[96], steatosis and insignificant inflammatory
infiltration of the portal tract[67,97,98] were detectable in
isolated persistent GBV-C infection. The histological
activity index in patients infected with GBV-C alone was
observed to be much lower than that in patients with
HCV+GBV-C or HCV[37,99,100]. In GBV-C monoinfected
patients, moderate or mild focal portal hepatitis was
prevalent with slight periportal infiltration and lobular
components being found in single cases. The bile tract
displayed epithelial fragmentary swelling and flattening
and no nuclei in some epitheliocytes. Some bile ducts
demonstrated partially desquamated epithelium in the
case of higher activities[99,101].
Intraoperative biopsies from GBV-C positive patients
with cholelithiasis who were monoinfected with GBV-C,
indicated that they had mild chronic hepatitis and, in
some cases, viral RNA in the liver tissue and gallbladder
mucosa. It is suggested that GBV-C may play a role in
the production of lithogenic bile and in the development
of cholelithiasis[102].
Coinfection of HGV with hepatitis B, C, and
D viruses is significantly more frequently detected
than monoinfection [103]. In patients with acute viral
hepatitis A (HAV), -B (HBV), -C (HCV), the detection
rate of GBV-C RNA was 2.9%-25%, 19%-32%,
and 20%-48.3%, respectively[88,89]. GBV-C RNA was
detectable in 8%-16% of patients with chronic hepatitis
(CH) B[30,77,100], 5.6%-21% of CH C[30,77,100], and 58% of
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CH B+D[98]. No differences were found in the clinical

manifestations (including those in the chronic pattern
and outcome) of the disease, biochemical parameters, or
the severity of hepatic histological changes in patients
with HBV and/or HCV as compared in those with
HBV+GBV-C and/or HCV+GBV-C [104-106]. Patients
with CHC alone and in combination with HGV have
been meticulously examined. By examining 420 patients,
Tanaka et al revealed a higher ALT activity in the group
of patients coinfected with HCV and GBV-C than in
those infected with HCV[107].
By comparing histological changes in the liver
tissue of patients with HCV and HCV + GBV-C,
Moriyama et al detected more significant bile duct
damages, perivenular and pericellular fibrosis in the latter
group[108]. These data were supported by the examination
of 312 patients with CH[99]. Of them 28 (9%) patients
were found to have RNA for HCV and GBV-C.
Complaints and clinical symptoms did not differ in the
groups of patients with HCV and HCV+GBV-C. There
was no evidence for the impact of HGV on the clinical
manifestations and the course of concomitant HCV
infection. However, analysis of liver tissue morphological
changes in patients coinfected with HCV and GBV-C
revealed slightly more frequent epithelial damage in the
bile duct (89%) than in those infected with HCV (67%),
which manifested itself as lysis of the epitheliocytic
nuclei, as well as flattening, destruction, and swelling of
the epithelium and its lymphocytic infiltration.
Whether GBV-C influences the course of CHC and
whether therapy with interferon is effective are currently
being discussed. Most studies demonstrate no differences
in the clinical course of the disease, biochemical
parameters, or the magnitude of hepatic histological
changes in both HCV alone and in combination with
GBV-C[109-111]. A study for the therapy of HGV is based
on the evaluation of interferon treatment in patients
coinfected with HCV+GBV-C. HGV was ascertained
to be sensitive to interferon. Administration of
-interferon (-IFN) to patients at a dose of 3000000
IU thrice weekly for 6 mo resulted in ALT activity
normalization and serum GBV-C RNA clearance in
18%-40% of the patients treated with -IFN[112,113]. Six
months after termination of a course of therapy, there
were persistent biochemical and virological responses
in 55%-57% of patients[114]. The therapeutic efficiency
was observed to depend on baseline GBV-C RNA
levels. The patients who had a low RNA titer (mean,
3.3 105 copies/mL) more frequently responded to
the therapy than those who had a higher one (mean,
3.5 108 copies/mL)[104,109]. There is now a prevailing
opinion that GBV-C has no impact on the efficiency
of -interferon treatment for chronic hepatitis C[114,115].
At the same time some investigations suggest that
the therapy causes more frequent adverse reactions
in patients with HCV+GGV-C and that after its
ter mination, this group of patients has a higher
histological activity index[116,117].
The implications of HGV for the development of
chronic liver diseases has not been appraised to date.

Reshetnyak VI et al . Hepatitis G virus

As for GBV-C infection, investigators could not trace

the clinical stages characteristic of HBV and HCV:
acute hepatitis-chronic hepatitis-liver cirrhosis (LC)hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A long-term (less than
16 years) follow-up of patients permitted discussion only
of the likelihood of development of chronic hepatitis.
GBV-C RNA was detectable in 8%-25.4% of patients
with chronic hepatitis non-A-non-E [118], 6%-15% of
patients with cryptogenic liver cirrhosis [119,120], and
3.1%-8.3% with HCC[121,122].
The similarity of the properties of GBV-C and
HCV offers a possibility of using HGV and its induced
experimental infection as a model to study hepatitis C.
Unlike hepatitis C, hepatitis G infection may be modeled
in nonhuman primates, which considerably reduces
the cost these studies that are in great demand for the
designing of hepatitis C vaccine.
Unexpected results were obtained while studying the
impact of GBV-C on the course of HIV infection[123,124].
Co-infection with GBV-C in the HIV-infected was
established to cause a reduction in mortality rates and
better clinical parameters of infection. Furthermore,
the efficiency of high-activity antiretroviral therapy
significantly increased. The positive effect of GBV-C
is accounted for by the fact that the envelope proteins
of this virus bind CD8l+ on T cells and induce dosedependent secretion of RANTES (regulated on
activation, normal T-cell expressed and secreted),
the natural ligand that binds CCR5 on the target cell,
thereby blocking the penetration of HIV[21,125]. In vitro
studies showed an increase in the expression of the
chemokines-RANTES, macrophage inflammatory
proteins (MIP-1, MIP-1), and stromal-cell derived
factor (SDF-1) in the blood of patients. There was also
a reduction in the expression of CCR5 onto the surface
of GBV-C-infected cells. All these factors may provide
indirect evidence for the diminished sensitivity of GBVC-infected cells to HIV[125-127].
A review of available data in the literature and the
authors own data suggest that the new HGV discovered
in the late 1990s has been rather well studied. The
structure of the virus is almost completely known;
its genotypes have been ascertained; its prevalence
(epidemiology) shown and the clinical picture of the
disease, routes of viral transmission, and the types
of coinfection described. The predominant site of
replication of the virus in the blood mononuclear cells,
spleen, and bone marrow has been indicated. The lack
of hepatotropicity of virus G (which is rarely detected
in the the liver), its frequent detection in the body
and tissues of a patient without any clinical signs of
hepatitis, and clinical improvement in the HIV-infected
patients coinfected with GBV-C cast doubt on the
appropriateness of the concept viral hepatitis G. The
interest shown in HGV is likely to be associated with the
similarity of its properties to those of HCV.

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