Monini Marina, Ostanello Fabio, Dominicis Alessandra, Tagliapietra Valentina, Vaccari Gabriele, Rizzoli Annapaola, Trombetta Claudia M, Montomoli Emanuele, Di Bartolo Ilaria
Department of Food Safety, Nutrition and Veterinary Public Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy.
Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Via Tolara di Sopra, 50, 40064 Ozzano dell'Emilia (BO), Italy.
Pathogens. 2020 Jul 14;9(7):568. doi: 10.3390/pathogens9070568.
People with some occupational or recreational activities, such as hunters and veterinarians, may have increased risk to be infected by the hepatitis E virus (HEV). The aim of the present study was to establish whether forestry workers could be considered at a higher risk of HEV infection than a control group. One hundred and fifty sera from forestry workers and a control group of 85 sera were analysed by anti-HEV IgG antibodies detection using a commercial ELISA kit. The anti-HEV IgG seroprevalence was 14% for forestry workers and 9.4% for the control group. Comparing the risk of HEV infection in the two groups, there was no difference in the odds ratio. However, the seroprevalence in older subjects was higher in the forestry workers than in the control group. Two sera from forestry workers were also positive for anti-HEV IgM, and, in one of them, HEV-RNA was detected. Our findings showed an increase of seroprevalence with age, which is likely to reflect cumulative exposure to HEV over time. The occupation of forestry workers did not seem to be associated with a higher risk of HEV infection. The study provided new insights into the risk of acquiring HEV in occupational exposure workers with open-air activities.
从事某些职业或娱乐活动的人群，如猎人及兽医，感染戊型肝炎病毒（HEV）的风险可能会增加。本研究的目的是确定林业工人感染HEV的风险是否高于对照组。使用商用ELISA试剂盒通过检测抗HEV IgG抗体，对150份林业工人血清和85份对照组血清进行了分析。林业工人的抗HEV IgG血清阳性率为14%，对照组为9.4%。比较两组中HEV感染的风险，优势比无差异。然而，林业工人中老年受试者的血清阳性率高于对照组。两份林业工人的血清抗HEV IgM也呈阳性，其中一份检测到HEV-RNA。我们的研究结果显示血清阳性率随年龄增长而升高，这可能反映了随着时间推移对HEV的累积暴露。林业工人的职业似乎与HEV感染的较高风险无关。该研究为从事户外作业的职业暴露工人感染HEV的风险提供了新的见解。
