Genotyping and sero-virological characterization of hepatitis B virus-infected blood donors in Central Eritrea: Supplementary methods

Aim: To determine the serological markers and genotype profiles of hepatitis B virus (HBV) isolates in

Central Eritrea. Materials & methods: A total of 191 hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)-positive sera

were randomly selected for the study. ELISA was used to perform HBV seromarker screening, genotypes

were determined using multiplex-nested PCR. Results: Of 191, 77.5% (148/191) were positive for HBcAb

(total), among which 99.3% (147/148) and 0.7% (1/148) were positive for HBsAg and hepatitis B surface

antibody, respectively. Of the 147 positive HBcAb/HBsAg, 16 (10.9%) and 131 (77.9%) were positive for

HBeAg and HBeAb, respectively. A total of 73 HBV isolates were successfully genotyped: 39 (53.4%) D; 10

(13.7%) E; 6 (8.2%) A; 6 (8.2%) C/D; 4 (5.5%) C; 3 (4.1%) C/D/E; 2 (2.7%) A/D; 2 (2.7%) D/E; and 1 (1.4%)

B/D. Conclusion: HBV genotype D is the predominant genotype among blood donors in Eritrea.