Biological diagnosis and characterization of occult hepatitis B virus infection in Burkina Faso

Introduction/objective The occult infection by the hepatitis B virus (OBI) characterized by the undetectable (HBs Ag) negative antigen in the serum and the presence of viral DNA, constitutes a major public health problem and a major challenge for clinical forms of hepatitis worldwide. The persistence of OBI very often leads to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and immunodeficiency. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of OBI and to characterize the incriminated genotypes of the virus. Material and method The plasmas of 252 HBsAg-negative volunteers were used for highlighting the viral DNA by PCR classic. PCR Multiplex using specific primers of 6 genotypes (A to F) was used for characterization. Results A prevalence of 11.9% (30/252) of OBI was obtained with 7.5% in women and 4.4% for men. Genotypes E (60.0%) and A3 (23.3%) were present and genotypes B, C, D, and F were absent. A mixed infection with E/A3 genotypes (16.7%) was observed. AC Anti-HBc was present in 80% of cases OBI. Discussion/Conclusion The prevalence of 11.9% of OBI could be related to the level of endemicity of the study area, Burkina Faso being a country with a prevalence of more than 14% of HBV infection. These infections are dominated by the A3 and E genotypes, confirming their importance in chronic HBV infections. The absence of genotypes B and C in cases of OBI constitutes a positive predictive value since their presence is linked to a more rapid evolution of the infection towards HCC. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. ### Funding Statement The author(s) received no specific funding for this work. ### Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Not Applicable The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: This study was carried out taking into account the free and informed consent of the participants. Respect for confidentiality and anonymity in relation to the provided information was essential. The study caused the approval of the institutional ethic committee of CERBA/LAOBIGENE and the national ethics committee of the Ministry of Health of Burkina Faso. I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals. Not Applicable I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Not Applicable I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines and uploaded the relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material as supplementary files, if applicable. Not Applicable All relevant data are within the manuscript and its Supporting Information files.