MOLECULAR AND CLINICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE HEPATITIS-C VIRUS GENOTYPE 2C FOUND IN ITALIANS IN ITALY AND FRANCE

We found a rare hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype in 11 Italian and three French patients. The HCV core gene sequence for these patients showed nucleotide similarities of 93-98% to each other, 88-92% to genotypes III (2a) and IV (2b) isolates, and only 82-85% to genotypes I (1a), II (1b), 1c, and V (3a) isolates. The NS5b sequence also indicated the distinctness of this group of HCV, its relatively close relationship to genotype III (2a) and IV (2b), and a high degree of similarity to several isolates provisionally classified as '2c'. The El region sequence determined in one French patient also had a high similarity to another '2c' isolate reported previously. Although the prevalence of this '2c' HCV in Italian patients was low (11/173: 6%), it was of clinical interest. This genotype was associated with poor responsiveness to interferon therapy and also with poor antibody response to C100-3 antigen, and two of the 11 Italian patients had mixed cryoglobulinemia, Interestingly, all the three French patients with the '2c' HCV were from Italy, and virtually Italians.