Kurauchi O, Furui T, Itakura A, Ishiko H, Sugiyama M, Ohno Y, Ando H, Tanamura A, Ishida T, Nawa A
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Nagoya University School of Medicine, Japan.
Arch Gynecol Obstet. 1993;253(3):121-6. doi: 10.1007/BF02767328.
To elucidate whether breast milk, vaginal discharge and contamination with maternal blood at birth are possible routes of mother-to-child transmission of hepatitis C virus (HCV), we examined HCV RNA in the cord and peripheral blood of infants, and in the blood, vaginal discharge, and breast milk of anti-HCV seropositive mothers. From July 1991 to July 1992, we studied 20 healthy pregnant women, who were seropositive with the Ortho anti-HCV EIA, and their infants. Using a sensitive nested polymerase chain reaction (nested PCR), we investigated the presence or absence of hepatitis C virus in the above-mentioned specimens. Moderate elevation of aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) was observed in only one woman in the first and third trimesters. The nested PCR and subsequent Southern hybridization detected 0.5-5.5 copies of HCV c-DNA. HCV RNA was detected in 17/20 blood samples (85%), 7/14 vaginal discharge samples (50%) and 4/10 cord blood samples (40%). However, no HCV RNA was identified in the peripheral blood of infants or breast milk. The mother-to-child transmission of HCV at delivery or via breast milk does not appear to contribute much to maintaining the global HCV reservoir.
为了阐明母乳、阴道分泌物及出生时母体血液污染是否为丙型肝炎病毒（HCV）母婴传播的可能途径，我们检测了婴儿脐带血和外周血以及抗-HCV血清反应阳性母亲的血液、阴道分泌物和母乳中的HCV RNA。1991年7月至1992年7月，我们研究了20名经Ortho抗-HCV酶免疫测定法检测为血清反应阳性的健康孕妇及其婴儿。我们使用敏感的巢式聚合酶链反应（巢式PCR）来调查上述标本中是否存在丙型肝炎病毒。仅在一名孕妇的孕早期和孕晚期观察到天冬氨酸转氨酶（AST）和丙氨酸转氨酶（ALT）轻度升高。巢式PCR及随后的Southern杂交检测到0.5 - 5.5拷贝的HCV cDNA。在17/20份血液样本（85%）、7/14份阴道分泌物样本（50%）和4/10份脐带血样本（40%）中检测到HCV RNA。然而，在婴儿外周血或母乳中未鉴定出HCV RNA。分娩时或通过母乳进行的HCV母婴传播似乎对全球HCV储存库的维持贡献不大。
