Seroprevalence of hepatitis C virus nucleocapsid antibodies in patients with cryptogenic chronic liver disease.
The serological responses to two different hepatitis C virus antigens were studied by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in a variety of chronic liver diseases and in healthy blood donors. The study population comprised 97 cases of cryptogenic chronic liver disease (40% with a history suggestive of parenterally transmitted non-A, non-B hepatitis and 60% without such a history), 87 cases of other well-characterized chronic liver diseases and 96 voluntary blood donors. The commercially available C100-3 assay and a new assay utilizing a 22 kD recombinant protein (c22) from the nucleocapsid region of the virus were used for antibody detection. Overall in the non-A, non-B hepatitis group, 77% were positive for anti-c22, 55% were positive for anti-C100-3 and 24% were negative by both tests. In the parenterally transmitted chronic liver disease group, 82% were positive for anti-C100-3 and 90% were positive for anti-c22 (not significant). In the cryptogenic chronic liver disease cases 36% were positive for anti-C100-3 and 67% were positive for anti-c22 (p less than 0.001). Only in one case (a patient with hepatitis B virus infection) was anti-C100-3 detected without concomitant anti-c22. None of the voluntary blood donors had detectable hepatitis C virus antibodies. The new enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay test for anti-c22 would appear to be a more sensitive indicator of chronic hepatitis C virus infection than the existing commercial test, suggesting a useful diagnostic role in both cases of cryptogenic chronic non-A, non-B hepatitis liver disease and for the screening of blood products for prevention of hepatitis after transfusion.
Academic Department of Medicine, St. Mary's Hospital Medical School, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London, United Kingdom.
J
J
Brown
S
S
Dourakis
P
P
Karayiannis
R
R
Goldin
J
J
Chiba
H
H
Ohba
T
T
Miyamura
H C
HC
Thomas
D001483:Base Sequence; D002213:Capsid / Q000276:immunology*; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000276:immunology*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000276:immunology*; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies / Q000032:analysis*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D006801:Humans; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D015345:Oligonucleotide Probes; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012698:Serologic Tests
D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D015345:Oligonucleotide Probes