Parenteral HCV Transmission: Assessing Risks and Prevention Strategies in vitro

描述（由申请人提供）：本项目旨在了解通过不安全药物注射传播丙型肝炎病毒（HCV）的流行病学风险，并评估减少传播的方法。研究方案采用跨学科流行病学方法，将药物注射实践的真实观察结果融合到基于实验室的研究中，以分析（1）使用HCV污染的注射设备导致HCV传播的可能性，（2）HCV在注射设备中存活的持续时间，（3）消毒剂杀灭HCV的可能性，和（4）在注射吸毒者中HCV流行仍在迅速增加的世界部分地区常见的各种药物制备和注射实践中暴露于感染性HCV的可能性。实验室检测利用了新开发的HCV增殖体外检测，该检测采用完整病毒体，实验室中注射用具的处理将由具有药物注射实践第一手观察经验的医学人类学家监督。流行病学分析和结果的传播将用于告知预防计划和有传播或感染HCV风险的个人可以采取的减少传播的步骤。 公共卫生相关性：该项目与公共卫生直接相关，因为研究结果将用于提供控制注射吸毒者中丙型肝炎病毒传播流行病所需的信息。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This project has been designed to understand the epidemiology of the risks for transmission of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) through unsafe drug injection and evaluate methods to reduce transmission. The study protocol applies an interdisciplinary epidemiological approach that fuses into laboratory-based research the real-world observations on drug injection practices to analyze (1) the potential for HCV transmission resulting from the use of HCV-contaminated injection equipment, (2) the duration of HCV viability in injection equipment of equipment, (3) the potential for disinfectants to inactivate HCV, and (4) the potential for exposure to infectious HCV in various drug preparation and injection practices common in parts of the world where the HCV epidemic among injection drugs users is still rapidly increasing. The laboratory assay takes advantage of a newly developed in vitro assay for HCV proliferation that employs whole virions and the handling of injection paraphernalia in the laboratory will be informed by oversight from medical anthropologists who have first-hand observational experience of drug injection practices. Epidemiological analysis and dissemination of the results will be used to inform prevention programs and individuals at risk for transmitting or becoming infected with HCV about the step that can be taken to reduce transmission. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: This project is directly relevant to public health since the results will be used provide information needed to control the epidemic of hepatitis C virus transmission among injection drug users.