Sequential bottlenecks drive viral evolution in early acute hepatitis C virus infection.

ABSTRACT: Hepatitis C is a pandemic human RNA virus, which commonly causes chronic infection and liver disease. The characterization of viral populations that successfully initiate infection, and also those that drive progression to chronicity is instrumental for understanding pathogenesis and vaccine design. A comprehensive and longitudinal analysis of the viral population was conducted in four subjects followed from very early acute infection to resolution of disease outcome. By means of next generation sequencing (NGS) and standard cloning/Sanger sequencing, genetic diversity and viral variants were quantified over the course of the infection at frequencies as low as 0.1%. Phylogenetic analysis of reassembled viral variants revealed acute infection was dominated by two sequential bottleneck event

SUBMITTER: Bull RA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3164670 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature