title: Hepatitis C as the cause of chronic non-A, non-B hepatitis: high sensitivity of simultaneous measurement of core and non-structural antibodies.
abstract: First generation serologic tests (ELISA-1) for hepatitis C virus infection measure antibodies directed against a short non-structural segment of the virus (anti-c100-3). A major disadvantage of this test is that it lacks sensitivity in the identification of hepatitis C virus among patients at risk of infection. Thus, only 70-90% of chronic non-A, non-B cases are ELISA-1 positive. The present study set out to determine whether antibodies directed against the core region would be a more sensitive indicator of hepatitis C virus infection in patients with chronic non-A, non-B hepatitis. Sera were studied from 97 patients with raised serum alanine aminotransferase levels for more than 6 months in whom other causes of abnormal alanine aminotransferase were excluded. Using ELISA-1, 85 sera (87%) were anti-c100-3 positive. Sera were then tested for presence of antibody directed against Po, a core peptide of a Japanese strain of hepatitis C virus, using an ELISA method. Eighty-eight sera (91%) were anti-Po positive. Among the 12 anti-c100-3 negative patients, six were anti-Po positive. A second generation ELISA for anti-HCV (ELISA-2) incorporates a different antibody to the core region (c22-3) in addition to an expanded non-structural region, c200, which consists of c100-3 plus c33c. With these tests, all sera but one were positive, including 11 of 12 ELISA-1 negative and eight of nine anti-Po negative sera.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University of Sydney, Westmead Hospital, New South Wales, Australia.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yatuhashi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yano
authors.forename: G C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Farrell
mesh_terms: D002908:Chronic Disease; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000276:immunology; D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies / Q000032:analysis*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000175:diagnosis*; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D006801:Humans; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014758:Viral Core Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D017361:Viral Nonstructural Proteins / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D006508:Hepatitis Antibodies; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D014758:Viral Core Proteins; D017361:Viral Nonstructural Proteins; C078224:anti-C100-3