Molecular epidemiology and genotype distribution of 14 high-risk human papillomavirus among women from the state of Chhattisgarh, India: A retrospective study (January 2024-August 2026)

Title : Molecular epidemiology and genotype distribution of 14 high-risk human papillomavirus among women from the state of Chhattisgarh, India: A retrospective study (January 2024-August 2026)

Abstract:

Background: Persistent infection with 14-HR-HPV (HPV16, HPV18, HPV31, HPV33, HPV35, HPV39, HPV45, HPV51, HPV52, HPV56, HPV58, HPV59, HPV66 and HPV68) is the primary etiological factor for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia and cervical carcinoma. HPV16 and HPV18 is the most prevalent oncogenic genotype than rest of 12-HR-HPV worldwide. Chhattisgarh, a central Indian state having large tribal population, with limited screening HR-HPV. Hence, the 14 HR-HPV genotypes study is essential for strengthening WHO-Elimination of Cervical Cancer.
Aims: To determine the prevalence of HR-HPV genotypes in women from Chhattisgarh, India, from Jan-2024 to Aug-2026.
Methods: During Jan-2024 to Aug-2026; a retrospective analysis was conducted for HR-HPV at the State-VRDL, Microbiology department, AIIMS, Raipur, Chhattisgarh. The cervical scrapping were received from the OB/GYN department, AIIMS Raipur. Sum of 1,392 women were screened during the period by using TRUPCR HR-HPV Genotyping Kit  (3B Blackbio, India) and MolDx HPV High-Risk Genotyping qPCR assay (RetroBiotech, India). Genotype-specific HR-HPV data were analyzed for the genotipic prevalence.
Results: Among 1,392 women of 24 to 82 years age range were screened, 275 (19.8%) were positive for at least one HR-HPV genotype. HPV16 was the most frequently detected genotype (124/275; 45.1%), followed by HPV18 (75/275; 27.3%), HPV58 (18/275; 6.5%), HPV52 (16/275; 5.8%), HPV59 (15/275; 5.5%), HPV56 (14/275; 5.1%), HPV66 & 68 (13/275; 4.7% each), HPV51 & 33 (12/275; 4.4% each), HPV31 (11/275; 4.0%), HPV35 (5/275; 1.8%), HPV39 (4/275; 1.5%) and HPV45 (4/275; 1.5%). Mixed-genotypes infections were identified in 49 (17.8%) HR-HPV-positive women, with prevalent HPV16/18 (32/49; 65%) combination.
Conclusions: HPV16 was shown the predominance in this Central Indian; however, a substantial burden of other HR-HPV genotypes was also observed. The prevalence of non-16/18 HR-HPV types underscore the importance of comprehensive surveillance, optimized cervical cancer screening, and broader vaccine coverage. These findings provide important epidemiological data from Chhattisgarh, that has been inadequately represented in HPV surveillance studies in India.

Biography:

Vaibhav Kumar Tamrakar is currently working as a Research Scientist and have over 10 years of experience in clinical diagnostics and infectious disease research. His expertise encompasses molecular diagnostics, qRT-PCR, ddPCR, NGS and bioinformatics. He have designed and validated more than 300 primers and probes for qRT-PCR-based diagnostic panels targeting respiratory, urinary, gastrointestinal, sexually transmitted, ENT, antimicrobial resistance, sepsis and veterinary pathogens. He also have hands-on experience with BSL-III laboratory workflows, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis culture, nucleic acid extraction and molecular testing. His research focuses on CRISPR-based diagnostics, genomic surveillance, rapid molecular testing, and infectious disease diagnostics.