1. Difference in the distribution of e antigen among different ethnic groups in a population of blood donors.
- Author
-
Richer G, Phaneuf D, Boisvert F, Guévin R, and Viallet A
- Subjects
- Asia ethnology, Canada, France ethnology, Hepatitis B Antigens analysis, Humans, Italy ethnology, United Kingdom ethnology, Antigens analysis, Blood Donors, Ethnicity
- Abstract
Sensitive techniques were used to detect e antigen and the corresponding antibody (anti-e) among 368 voluntary blood donors positive for hepatitis B surface antigen in the Montreal area and 310 people living in close contact with them. Neither e nor anti-e was found in the absence of markers of hepatitis B virus (HBV). Among the blood donors e antigen was detected in 23 and anti-e in 313, and 32 were negative for both markers. Of the 368 blood donors 330 were of French origin and 38 from other ethnic groups. The 23 e-positive subjects were unequally distributed among the ethnic groups: only 14 (4.2%) were recruited among the French group while 9 (23.7%) were recruited among other ethnic groups (P less than 0.001). This differences among ethnic groups might be related to the vertical or horizontal mode of dissemination of HBV infection.
- Published
- 1977