title: Correlation between relative number of circulating low-density hepatitis C virus particles and disease activity in patients with chronic hepatitis C.
abstract: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) circulates as particles having differing buoyant densities. Changes in the relative proportions of virus particles of different densities were examined in 19 patients with chronic hepatitis C: 6 without (group A) and 13 with (group B) abnormal serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels. High- and low-density virus particles were separated by differential flotation centrifugation. The numbers of high-density particles consistently exceeded that of low-density particles in all patients in group A, whereas the titers of both types of particles were the same at least once in 7 of 10 patients sampled at two time points in group B. The ALT level significantly increased <2 months later (P < 0.05) when the titers of both types of particles were the same in patients in group B. Thus, we found a correlation between the relative numbers of circulating low-density HCV particles and disease activity in chronic hepatitis C patients.
authors.affiliation: First Department of Internal Medicine, Yamaguchi University, School of Medicine, Ube, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hino
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fujii
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Korenaga
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Murakami
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Okazaki
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Okuda
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Okita
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D002498:Centrifugation; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000821:virology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011233:Precipitin Tests; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral; D000410:Alanine Transaminase