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. 2021 Oct 17;10(10):1340.
doi: 10.3390/pathogens10101340.

Low Prevalence of HEV Infection and No Associated Risk of HEV Transmission from Mother to Child among Pregnant Women in Vietnam

Pham Xuan Huy  1 , Dang Thanh Chung  1 , Dang Thuy Linh  1 , Ngo Thu Hang  1 , Sivaramakrishna Rachakonda  2 , Srinivas Reddy Pallerla  2   3 , Le Thi Kieu Linh  2   3 , Hoang Van Tong  1 , Le Minh Dung  4 , Can Van Mao  1 , Heiner Wedemeyer  5   6 , C-Thomas Bock  7 , Peter G Kremsner  2   8 , Le Huu Song  3   9 , Bui Tien Sy  3   9 , Nguyen Linh Toan  1 , Thirumalaisamy P Velavan  2   3
Affiliations

Low Prevalence of HEV Infection and No Associated Risk of HEV Transmission from Mother to Child among Pregnant Women in Vietnam

Pham Xuan Huy et al. Pathogens. .

Abstract

Infections with HEV in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) are associated with increased rates of preterm birth, miscarriage, and stillbirth. The aim of the present study was to investigate HEV infections in pregnant women and the possibility of mother-to-child transmission, and associated outcomes. A total of 183 pregnant women in their third trimester were recruited and followed until delivery. Anti-HEV IgG and IgM were determined via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and HEV nucleic acids were detected in stool and cord blood samples. HEV genotypes were identified by Sanger sequencing, and phylogenetic analyses were performed. Mother-to-child transmission and associated adverse outcomes were not observed. Only 2% of patients (n = 4/183) tested positive for anti-HEV IgM, and 8% (n = 14/183) tested positive for anti-HEV IgG antibodies. Cord blood (n = 150) analysis showed that there was no IgM detected, while 4% (n = 6/150) tested positive for anti-HEV IgG, which was consistent with mothers testing positive for anti-HEV IgG. Nucleic acid tests for HEV RNA yielded 2% (n = 4/183) from the serum and stool of pregnant women, and none from cord blood. The HEV isolates belonged to the genotype HEV-3a, with 99% homology with humans and 96% with pigs. No association was found between the risk of HEV infection and pregnancy outcomes or HEV transmission from mother to child. HEV-3 infections of zoonotic origin in pregnancy might have eventually resolved without complications.

Keywords: HEV-3; hepatitis E virus; mother-to-child-transmission; pregnant women; zoonoses.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Maximum likelihood phylogenetic tree of HEV nucleotide sequences of ORF1 isolated from humans and animals. The sequences analyzed in the present study are marked with asterisks (*), and the NCBI GenBank accession numbers are OK129292-OK129295.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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