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©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
Genetic diversity and occult hepatitis B infection in Africa: A comprehensive review
Michee M Bazie, Mahamoudou Sanou, Florencia Wendkuuni Djigma, Tegwinde Rebeca Compaore, Dorcas Obiri-Yeboah, Benoît Kabamba, Bolni Marius Nagalo, Jacques Simpore, Rasmata Ouédraogo
Michee M Bazie, Mahamoudou Sanou, Rasmata Ouédraogo, Department of Medicine, Transmissible Diseases Laboratory, Université Joseph KI-ZERBO, Ouagadougou 0000, Burkina Faso
Florencia Wendkuuni Djigma, Jacques Simpore, Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Molecular Biology and Genetics Laboratory, University Joseph KI-ZERBO, Ouagadougou 0000, Burkina Faso
Tegwinde Rebeca Compaore, Infectious and parasitic disease Laboratory, Health Sciences Research Institute, IRSS/CNRST, National Center for Scientific and Technological Research, Ouagadougou 0000, Burkina Faso
Dorcas Obiri-Yeboah, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medical Sciences, University of Cape Coast, PMB, Cape Coast 0000, Ghana
Benoît Kabamba, Department of Clinical Biology, Virology Laboratory, Cliniques Universitaires Saint Luc, Université Catholique de Louvain, Bruxelles 0000, Belgium
Bolni Marius Nagalo, Division of Hematology and Oncology, Mayo Clinic, AZ 0000, United States
Author contributions: Bazie MM, Sanou M, Djigma FW and Kabamba B conceived and designed the study; Bazie MM, Sanou M and Djigma FW were involved in independent research of relevant articles; Bazie MM, Sanou M, Djigma FW and Compaore TR were involved in full text review of relevant articles; Bazie MM, Sanou M and Djigma FW were involved in data extraction, analysis and interpretation; Bazie MM, Sanou M, Djigma FW, Compaore TR, Obiri-Yeboah D, Kabamba B, Nagalo BM were involved with drafting or revising the manuscript; Sanou M, Djigma FW, provided administrative, technical and material support; Supervision of the study was made by Sanou M, Kabamba B, Simpore J and Ouedraogo R; all authors critically revised and approved the final version of this publication.
Conflict-of-interest statement: No potential conflicts of interest.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See:
https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/ Corresponding author: Florencia Wendkuuni Djigma, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Molecular Biology and Genetics Laboratory, University Joseph KI-ZERBO, 01 BP 364, Ouagadougou 0000, Burkina Faso.
florencia.djigma@gmail.com
Received: November 14, 2023
Revised: February 6, 2024
Accepted: April 15, 2024
Published online: May 27, 2024
Processing time: 190 Days and 0.4 Hours
BACKGROUND
Occult hepatitis B infection (OBI) is a globally prevalent infection, with its frequency being influenced by the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in a particular geographic region, including Africa. OBI can be transmitted through blood transfusions and organ transplants and has been linked to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The associated HBV genotype influences the infection.
AIM
To highlight the genetic diversity and prevalence of OBI in Africa.
METHODS
This systematic review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines and involved a comprehensive search on PubMed, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and African Journals Online for published studies on the prevalence and genetic diversity of OBI in Africa.
RESULTS
The synthesis included 83 articles, revealing that the prevalence of OBI varied between countries and population groups, with the highest prevalence being 90.9% in patients with hepatitis C virus infection and 38% in blood donors, indicating an increased risk of HBV transmission through blood transfusions. Cases of OBI reactivation have been reported following chemotherapy. Genotype D is the predominant, followed by genotypes A and E.
CONCLUSION
This review highlights the prevalence of OBI in Africa, which varies across countries and population groups. The study also demonstrates that genotype D is the most prevalent.
Core Tip: The objective of this systematic literature review is to highlight the genetic diversity and prevalence of occult hepatitis B infection (OBI) in Africa. This systematic review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines and involved a comprehensive search on PubMed, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and African Journals Online for published studies on the prevalence and genetic diversity of OBI in Africa. This review highlights the prevalence of OBI in Africa, which varies across countries and population groups. The study also demonstrates that genotype D is the most prevalent.
