Incidence and Influencing Factors of New Hepatitis B Infections and Spontaneous Clearance: A Large-Scale, Community-Based Study in China

Dietary calcium is inversely associated with hepatitis B virus infection: an analysis of US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2007-2020

BACKGROUND

There have been studies on the relationship between hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and diet. We hypothesized HBV infection is related to dietary calcium intake, but the evidence is limited. This study aimed to examine whether dietary calcium intake is independently related to HBV infection in the United States population.

METHODS

A total of 20,488 participants aged over 20 years from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), conducted from 2007 to 2020, were included in this study. Pearson correlation was used to test the association between dietary calcium and serum calcium. The relationships of HBV infection with dietary calcium and serum calcium were assessed by logistic regression models.

RESULTS

There was a weak correlation between dietary calcium and serum calcium (r = 0.048). Logistic regression models indicated that HBV infection had a linear negative correlation with dietary calcium (OR 0.37; 95%CI 0.19, 0.76). For each additional 10 mg dietary calcium, the possibility of HBV infection was reduced by 63%. Hepatitis B positive participants had lower serum calcium content than negative participants. Stratified analysis shown the linear relationship between calcium and HBV infection varied among sex, race/ethnicity, and body mass index.

CONCLUSION

Our findings demonstrated HBV infection was linearly and inversely correlated with dietary calcium. The current study is expected to offer a fresh perspective on reducing HBV infection.

Development of monoclonal antibodies to target the large surface protein of hepatitis B virus and their use in therapeutic and diagnostic applications

Over 250 million people are living with chronic infection caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV). HBV has three surface proteins, namely small (SHBs), medium (MHBs) and large (LHBs), and they play different roles in the virus life cycle. The approved hepatitis B vaccine only contains the SHBs protein and many studies have focused on characterising the functional domains in SHBs. Although the LHBs protein is less studied, recent studies have shown that it plays important roles in mediating viral entry, replication and assembly. Over the years, there have been major advancements in monoclonal antibody (mAb) discovery tools and multiple mAbs have been developed to specifically target the preS1 domain in LHBs. We summarise the HBV infection systems and antibody discovery strategies that have been utilised by various research groups to assess the potential use of anti-preS1 mAbs as therapeutic antibodies against HBV or in the development of new diagnostic assays.

Molecular evolutionary characteristics of OBI virus S gene among the adolescent population in rural and pastoral areas of Xinjiang Province

OBJECTIVE

To determine the actual hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection rate, occult HBV infection (OBI) rate, and molecular evolutionary characteristics of the OBI virus S gene in the adolescent population living in rural and pastoral areas of Xinjiang Province.

METHODS

A cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted among the adolescent population living in the farming and herding areas. Venous blood samples (3-5 mL) were collected from eligible students in three central schools located in Banfanggou Township, Shuixigou Village, and Miaolgou Village, all in Urumqi County, in the nine-year compulsory system. Clustersampling in a population was adopted, and informed consent was obtained from the participating students. All serum samples were qualitatively tested for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) by electrochemiluminescence. Subsequently, the HBV S gene was amplified by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and the positive PCR products were purified; the target gene sequences were then amplified. Molecular evolutionary characterization of the target gene sequences was performed using MEGA 11software.

RESULTS

Overall, 1712 subjects were enrolled. The HBsAg carrier rate and OBI infection rate were 1.93% (33/1712) and 6.13% (103/1679), respectively. HBsAg (-) samples included 103 OBI strains, of which B-genotype strains accounted for 80.58% (83/103; 1 case of ayw1 serotype and 82 cases of adw2 serotype), C-genotype strains accounted for 14.56% (15/103; 1 case of adw2 serotype and 14 cases of adrq+serotype), and D-genotype strains accounted for 4.85% (5/103; 1 case of adw2 serotype and 4 cases of ayw2 serotype). Mutations were detected in the "a" determinant region of the following genes: P127S, G130R, and N146S (B-genotype OBI strains); T126I and T143S (C-genotype OBI strains); T126I, P127S, F134Y, and T143S (D-genotype OBI strains).

CONCLUSION

A certain proportion of young people are infected with OBI strains. The B-genotype of OBI strains is the possible dominant genotype. OBI strains have amino acid mutations in the "a" determinant region, and they are likely to undergo a change in their antigenicity and immunogenicity. More attention must be paid to prevent problems due to OBI.

Analysis of Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Hepatitis B Among Freshmen in Jiangsu Based on Lasso-Logistic Regression and Structural Equation Model

Objective

We aimed to describe the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) status of hepatitis B virus (HBV) among freshmen who were in the class of 2020 and from Jiangsu Province.

Methods

A random multistage sampling had been used to screen freshmen to conduct online questionnaire. The chi-square test was applied for pairwise comparison between sub-groups. Lasso regression and logistic regression were used to analyze the influencing factors of KAP about HBV. A structural equation model was established to explore the relationships among KAP of HBV.

Results

The total awareness rate of HBV among freshmen was 63.1%. More than 50% of freshmen reported that they were not willing to live with hepatitis B carriers. Only 51.0% of students had been immunized against HBV. The knowledge of HBV among students whose fathers had college/bachelor degree or above was 1.464 times higher than those whose fathers’ education level was junior high school or below (95% CI = 1.277~1.677). Both of positive attitude and behavior among female students were 1.424 times (95% CI = 1.329~1.525) and 1.468 times (95% CI = 1.291~1.669) than that within male students, respectively. The positive behaviors of students whose mothers had college education or above were 1.347 times higher than those whose mothers had the degree of junior high or below (95% CI = 1.147~1.582). Students who living with their parents were 1.167 times likely to have positive behaviors than those who living in other methods (95% CI = 1.020~1.334). The structural equation model had shown that the direct effect of knowledge on preventive motivation, attitude and behavior was 0.28, 0.53 and 0.10, respectively.

Conclusion

The population of freshmen still was far from a comprehensive understanding of HBV prevention and treatment. It is suggested that administrators of colleges and universities should pay more attentions to education of HBV knowledge as well as take multi-channel measures for prevention and management.