title: Hepatitis C virus-associated glomerulonephritis without hepatitis C virus in the blood.
abstract: An 82-year-old woman with nephrotic syndrome and a 61-year-old woman with proteinuria and purpura on the lower extremities are reported. Both patients had test results positive for hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody, but HCV RNA was not detected in the blood of either patient. The kidney biopsy showed membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis with capillary deposition of C3 and immunoglobulin M, indicating HCV-associated glomerulonephritis. These cases are suggestive to study the pathogenesis of this disease.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, Hirosaki University School of Medicine, Hirosaki, Japan. yamabe@cc.hirosaki-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Hideaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamabe
authors.forename: Norio
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Masayuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Michiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shimada
authors.forename: Ryuichiro
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kumasaka
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fujita
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Osawa
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Okumura
authors.forename: Naoto
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Oyama
authors.forename: Akishi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Momose
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000601:surgery; D003176:Complement C3 / Q000032:analysis; D005153:Facial Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D005921:Glomerulonephritis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000276:immunology; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000209:etiology; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000276:immunology*; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007105:Immune Complex Diseases / Q000209:etiology*; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000276:immunology; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000032:analysis; D007678:Kidney Glomerulus / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*; D009404:Nephrotic Syndrome / Q000209:etiology; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000276:immunology; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012217:Rheumatoid Factor / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D003176:Complement C3; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007075:Immunoglobulin M; D012367:RNA, Viral; D012217:Rheumatoid Factor