Detection by western blotting of an antibody to the hepatitis C virus E1 envelope protein in sera of patients with chronic liver disease.
We detected an antibody to HCV envelope protein (E1) in sera of patients with HCV-related chronic liver diseases (20 patients with chronic hepatitis and 5 patients with liver cirrhosis) by Western blotting using the fusion protein of E1 envelope protein and beta-galactosidase as an antigen. The antibody to HCV E1 (anti-HCV E1) was detected in 8 (42%) of 19 patients positive for HCV-RNA (16 were positive and 3 were negative for antibody to C100-3) and in 1 (17%) of 6 patients negative for HCV-RNA but positive for antibody to C100-3. HCV-RNA was detected in 8 (89%) of 9 anti-HCV E1 positive sera. The value of alanine aminotransferase was significantly higher in patients positive for anti-HCV E1 than in patients negative for the antibody. Although an antibody to the envelope protein of HCV is suspected to be one of the candidates of virus-neutralizing antibodies, our results suggest this hypothesis appears to be unlikely.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000276:immunology*; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies / Q000032:analysis*; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D006801:Humans; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000276:immunology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins / Q000276:immunology*
D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins