Background: The prevalence of hepatitis C (HCV) in Northern Europe has not been well described. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence and spectrum of hepatitis C infection in the general adult ...population of Oslo, Norway. Methods: The study was part of the Oslo Health Study 2000-2001 and included a random selection of individuals older than 30 years living in Oslo County. Sera from 11,456 participants were screened for anti-HCV (EIA-3), positive samples were confirmed (RIBA-3) and examined for HCV RNA (PCR). All anti-HCV positive patients were offered clinical evaluation. Routine biochemical liver tests were performed. Candidates for HCV treatment were asked to undergo a percutanous liver biopsy. Results: Among 11,456 participants HCV RNA was detected in 62 (0.5%) and HCV RNA with raised serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in 46 (0.4%). Anti-HCV was detected in 78 (0.7%) with a peak prevalence of 1.5% among subjects 40 and 45 years old. Being anti-HCV positive was associated with being unmarried, unemployed and having low education. Anti-HCV prevalence was higher among subjects with alcohol-related problems compared to those without (4.4% versus 0.6%, P r < r 0.001). It was also higher among smokers compared to non-smokers (2.0% versus 0.2%, P r < r 0.001). In 33 liver biopsies, bridging fibrosis was seen in 8 (24%) and cirrhosis in 1 (3%). The route of transmission was injecting drug use in 67%, transfusion in 6% and unknown in 27%. Conclusion: In this population-based survey the prevalence of chronic hepatitis C was 0.5% and ALT was raised in 80% of those with chronic infection.
Enterovirus and adenovirus are common in infancy, causing mostly asymptomatic infections. However, even an asymptomatic infection may be associated with increased risk of development of certain ...chronic non-infectious diseases, as has been suggested for enterovirus and type 1 diabetes. Data on occurrence and course of the infections in infancy are therefore important for designing effective approaches towards study of the association.
To estimate the frequency of enterovirus and adenovirus infections in Norwegian infants, to evaluate the duration of the infections, to investigate their association with symptoms, and to establish a robust procedure that will be used to study the association between these viruses and the development of auto-immunity leading to type 1 diabetes.
Parents of infants, recruited for a study on environmental triggers of type 1 diabetes, submitted monthly samples of infant faeces, as well as information on symptoms of infection. The samples were analysed for enterovirus and adenovirus using quantitative real-time PCR, and enterovirus-positive samples were sequenced.
Enteroviruses were found in 142/1255 (11.3%), and adenoviruses in 138/1255 (11.0%) of stool samples. Approximately half of the infants were exposed to these viruses at least once during the first year of observation (period 3–14 months of age). The presence of adenovirus was associated with fever and with symptoms of cold but not with diarrhoea and vomiting. The enterovirus positivity was not associated with any symptoms.
The prevalence of enterovirus and adenovirus in longitudinally obtained faecal samples from infants is sufficiently high to enable studies of their association with chronic diseases. The present protocol for evaluating exposure to these viruses is well suited for large-scale efforts aimed at assessing possible long-term consequences, particularly in relation to type 1 diabetes.
At the very heart of Swedish healthcare digitalisation are large investments in electronic health records (EHRs). These integrated information systems (ISs) carry promises of great benefits and value ...for organisations. However, realising IS benefits and value has, in general, proven to be a challenging task, and as organisations strive to formalise their realisation efforts a misconception of rationality threatens to emerge. This misconception manifests itself when the formality of analysis threatens to underrate the impact of social processes in deciding which potential benefits to pursue. This paper suggests that these decisions are the result of a social process of negotiation. The purpose of this paper is to observe three benefits analysis projects of three Swedish hospitals to better understand the character and management of proposed benefits negotiations. Findings depict several different categories of benefits negotiations, as well as key factors to consider during the benefits negotiation process.
JA Liljeqvist, E Trybala, B Svennerholm, S Jeansson, E Sjogren-Jansson and T Bergstrom
Department of Virology, Goteborg University, Sweden. liljeja@clavicula.mednet.gu.se
Glycoprotein G is a major ...target for the humoral immune response against
herpes simplex virus (HSV) and a prototype antigen for type- specific
serodiagnosis discriminating HSV-1 and HSV-2 infections. The mature part of
HSV-2 glycoprotein G-2 (gG-2) contains a unique stretch suspected to
mediate type specificity, and in addition a region homologous to HSV-1
glycoprotein G-1 (gG-1). Antigenic determinants of the mature gG-2 were
mapped by testing the reactivity of mouse anti-gG- 2 monoclonal antibodies
(MAbs) and purified human anti-gG-2 antibodies with synthetic peptides
coupled to cellulose membranes. The anti-gG-2 MAbs bound to four epitopes
localized in a narrow cluster within a gG-2 segment delimited by amino
acids (aa) 552 and 611. This cluster was located between the predicted
O-glycan-rich region and the transmembrane anchor sequence. The epitopes of
the human anti-gG-2 antibodies were localized within three stretches of
amino acids, two of which were overlapping with those recognized by
anti-gG-2 MAbs. One of these stretches, delimited by aa 552 and 574, showed
reactivity to all human HSV-2 sera tested, but not to HSV-1 sera or to
purified anti-gG-1 antibodies. Neither the anti-gG-2 MAbs nor the purified
human anti-gG-2 antibodies were cross-reactive to gG-1 peptides or HSV-1
antigen, although most of the epitopes were localized within the part of
gG-2 which was homologous to gG-1. The findings concerning HSV-2 type-
specific human antibody response to a defined stretch within gG-2 may be of
importance for the further development of type-discriminating
serodiagnosis.
Acanthamoeba polyphaga (AP) is ubiquitous in nature and frequently infects humans. AP has some features, such as persistence, which makes it an attractive candidate in studies of a possible ...infectious aetiology in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In this study the occurrence of AP‐specific antibodies was compared between RA patients and matched controls.
The rectal and genital tract mucosae are considered to be major sites of entry for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) during sexual contact. We now demonstrate that vaginal epithelial cells can ...be infected by HIV type 1 (HIV-1) via a mechanism similar to that described for neuroglial cells and, more recently, for colorectal epithelial cells, involving initial interaction of the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein gp120 with a cell-surface glycosphingolipid (sulfated lactosylceramide). A hyperimmune serum against gp120 was able to neutralize HIV-1 infection of vaginal epithelial cells. Site-directed immunization was employed to identify sites on gp120 recognized by antibodies neutralizing HIV-1 infection of vaginal and colonic epithelial cells. Hyperimmune sera were raised in monkeys against a series of 40 overlapping synthetic peptides covering the entire sequence of HIV-1 (HTLV-IIIB) gp120. Antisera raised against five synthetic peptides, corresponding to three relatively conserved regions and to the hypervariable region (V3 loop), efficiently neutralized HIV-1 infection of human vaginal epithelial cells in vitro. Similar results were obtained with the colonic cells. Hyperimmune sera to all five peptides have been shown earlier to neutralize HIV-1 infectivity in CD4+T cells. These results have obvious implications for the design of mucosal subunit vaccines against sexually transmitted HIV-1 infections.
Significant homology was found between MPB70 and each of four repeat domains of osteoblast-specific factor 2 (OSF-2). Two internal homology regions within each repeat domain of OSF-2 presumed to be ...related to the active site(s) of this bone adhesion molecule showed the highest homology. A literature search concerning osteitis after Mycobacterium bovis BCG vaccination in neonates revealed that MPB70-high-producer substrains were associated with an increased incidence of osteitis following vaccination. These observations indicate that the function of MPB70 is related to the interaction between bacilli and the host following vaccination or infection with mycobacteria
1 Department of Clinical Virology, University of Göteborg, Guldhedsgatan 10B, S-413 46 Göteborg, Sweden
and 2 University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, U.S.A.
The ...amino acid residues critical for interaction between herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) glycoprotein C (gC-1) and cell surface heparan sulphate (HS) were localized to two separate regions within antigenic site II of this glycoprotein. These amino acids were Arg-143, Arg-145, Arg-147 and Thr-150 in one region and Gly-247 in the other. This conclusion is based on the following observations. (i) Monoclonal antibodies defining gC-1 antigenic site II, and not those reactive with antigenic site I, inhibited HSV-1-induced haemagglutination and virus binding to susceptible cells. (ii) A number of HSV-1 mar mutants, altered at these critical residues, were impaired in attachment to cells. (iii) Synthetic peptides, corresponding to these two regions inhibited virus attachment to cells and infectivity. In addition these peptides were found to agglutinate red blood cells. This agglutination was inhibited by soluble HS, and was prevented by the pretreatment of red blood cells with heparitinase suggesting that cell surface HS was a site of peptide binding. The same was observed with the polycationic substances neomycin and poly- L -lysine. In conclusion, we propose that the regions of gC-1 represented by the HS-binding peptides may form a functional site of a polycationic nature, active in attachment to the polyanionic glycosaminoglycan chain of cell surface HS.
Received 6 September 1993;
accepted 4 November 1993.
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