Identification of hepatitis B virus indigenous to chimpanzees.

Hepatitis B viruses (HBV) and related viruses, classified in the Hepadnaviridae family, are found in a wide variety of mammals and birds. Although the chimpanzee has been the primary experimental model of HBV infection, this species has not been considered a natural host for the virus. Retrospective analysis of 13 predominantly wild-caught chimpanzees with chronic HBV infection identified a unique chimpanzee HBV strain in 11 animals. Nucleotide and derived amino acid analysis of the complete HBV genome and the gene coding for the hepatitis B surface antigen (S gene) identified sequence patterns that could be used to reliably identify chimpanzee HBV. This analysis indicated that chimpanzee HBV is distinct from known human HBV genotypes and is closely related to HBVs previously isolated from a chimpanzee, gibbons, gorillas, and orangutans.

[1]  J. Heeney,et al.  A New Group of Hepadnaviruses Naturally Infecting Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus) , 1999, Journal of Virology.

[2]  R. Rico-Hesse,et al.  Isolation of a hepadnavirus from the woolly monkey, a New World primate. , 1998, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

[3]  H. Margolis,et al.  Sequence-specific, single-primer amplification and detection of PCR products for identification of hepatitis viruses. , 1996, Journal of virological methods.

[4]  M. Buendia,et al.  A new hepadnavirus endemic in arctic ground squirrels in Alaska , 1996, Journal of virology.

[5]  I. Mushahwar,et al.  Complete sequencing of a gibbon hepatitis B virus genome reveals a unique genotype distantly related to the chimpanzee hepatitis B virus. , 1996, Virology.

[6]  A. Couroucé,et al.  Complete genomes, phylogenetic relatedness, and structural proteins of six strains of the hepatitis B virus, four of which represent two new genotypes. , 1994, Virology.

[7]  S. Löfdahl,et al.  Comparison of the amino acid sequences of nine different serotypes of hepatitis B surface antigen and genomic classification of the corresponding hepatitis B virus strains. , 1992, The Journal of general virology.

[8]  E. Heathcote.  Viral hepatitis and liver disease. Edited by A. J. Zuckerman, 1136 pp. New York: Alan R. Liss, Inc., 1988. $350.00 , 1989 .

[9]  M. Glynn.  Viral Hepatitis and Liver Disease , 1989 .

[10]  H. Sakugawa,et al.  Typing hepatitis B virus by homology in nucleotide sequence: comparison of surface antigen subtypes. , 1988, The Journal of general virology.

[11]  R. Sprengel,et al.  Isolation and characterization of a hepatitis B virus endemic in herons , 1988, Journal of virology.

[12]  M. Vaudin,et al.  The complete nucleotide sequence of the genome of a hepatitis B virus isolated from a naturally infected chimpanzee. , 1988, The Journal of general virology.

[13]  H. Varmus,et al.  Nucleotide sequence of an infectious molecularly cloned genome of ground squirrel hepatitis virus , 1984, Journal of virology.

[14]  F. Galibert,et al.  Nucleotide sequence of a cloned duck hepatitis B virus genome: comparison with woodchuck and human hepatitis B virus sequences , 1984, Journal of virology.

[15]  F. Galibert,et al.  Nucleotide sequence of a cloned woodchuck hepatitis virus genome: comparison with the hepatitis B virus sequence , 1982, Journal of virology.

[16]  Eichberg Jw,et al.  Hepatitis A and B: serologic survey of human and nonhuman primate sera. , 1980 .

[17]  R. Purcell,et al.  Hepatitis B virus infection in chimpanzees: titration of subtypes. , 1975, The Journal of infectious diseases.

[18]  R. Purcell,et al.  Antibody to hepatitis-associated antigen. Frequency and pattern of response as detected by radioimmunoprecipitation. , 1972, JAMA.

[19]  J. Maynard,et al.  Hepatitis-associated antigen in chimpanzees. , 1971, The Journal of infectious diseases.

[20]  E. A. Lichter,et al.  Chimpanzee Antibodies to Australia Antigen , 1969, Nature.