HEPATITIS E VIRUS (HEV), a member of Hepeviridae family, is the major cause of waterborne HEPATITIS in tropical and subtropical countries (1, 2). There are four genotypes and a single serotype of HEPATITIS E VIRUS infection. Genotype 1 is usually observed in the developing countries and causes community-level outbreaks, while genotype 3 is usually reported in the developed countries and does not cause outbreaks. Identification of swine HEPATITIS E VIRUS in many countries, such as Japan and the United States, and its close relationship with human HEV showed and proved that HEV is a zoonotic infection (1, 3, 4)...

Background: Patients on hemodialysis are at a high-risk for acquiring blood-borne infections, such as HEPATITIS G, HEPATITIS C, and HEPATITIS B VIRUSes. The aim of this investigation was to determine the prevalence of HGV infection among patients on hemodialysis and its co-infection with HEPATITIS C and B VIRUSes in Ahvaz. Methods: Blood samples were collected from patients on hemodialysis during January to July, 2016. RNAs were extracted from sera and cDNA was prepared using the kit. The nested-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing of positive samples were carried out to determine HEPATITIS G VIRUS genotypes. In addition, to evaluate the co-infection of HGV with HEPATITIS C and HEPATITIS B VIRUS infections, the sera of all the individuals were tested for HEPATITIS C VIRUS antibody and HBs-Ag by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) assay. Results: The HGV RNA was found in 10% of the patients with dominant genotype 2a. About 2% of the patients on hemodialysis were co-infected with HEPATITIS C VIRUS while 1% of them was co-infected with HEPATITIS B VIRUS. The statistical analysis revealed that there was a significant correlation (P < 0. 01) between duration of the hemodialysis process and HEPATITIS G VIRUS infectivity. Conclusions: The present study showed that patients, who used the hemodialysis devices in this city, were infected with HEPATITIS G, HEPATITIS B, and HEPATITIS C VIRUSes. The data indicates that duration of dialysis is significantly related to infection of HEPATITIS G VIRUS. Therefore, it is critical to control the sterility of these equipment for intercepting cross-infectivity.