TT virus(TTV)DNA was tested by nested-PCR from sera of hepatitis patients and volunteer blood donors in Minnan area. The amplified segment was a 189 base pair region in TTV ORF2. A total of six sequences were obtained from three non-A to G hepatits patients and two from volunteer blood donors. The sequences were found to be with 82.9% to 99.3% homology to TTV Japanese strain and Chinese strain. The divergence of sequence in these six segments varied from 0.7% to 17.1%, which indicated that the TTV had been existing for a long time in this area. In the serum of a non-A to G hepatitis patient who was negative for TTV DNA in the 14th day of disease course turned to be positive in the 30th day, two TTV sequences were obtained which showed 92.1% nucleotide homology. It indicated that different TTV strains can co exist in the same person. This patient’s blood had been transfused ten times between the collection of his TTV negative sample and his positive serum sample. Seven of the blood donors were traced and sampled for sera, of which three were positive for TTV. For all 161 patients tested, the history of exposure to blood products was associated with an increased risk of TTV infection(relative risk, 3.0; 95% confidence intervals, 1.89～4.81).
