Performance of the Abbott real-time PCR assay using m2000sp and m2000rt for hepatitis C virus RNA quantification.
Quantification of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA is essential for the everyday management of chronic hepatitis C therapy. "Real-time" PCR techniques are potentially more sensitive than classical PCR techniques, are not prone to carryover contamination, and have a consistently wider dynamic range of quantification. Thus, they are rapidly replacing other technologies for routine quantification of HCV RNA. We extensively evaluated the intrinsic characteristics and clinical performance of the m2000(sp)-m2000(rt) Abbott real-time PCR platform for HCV RNA quantification. The study shows that the m2000(sp)-m2000(rt) platform is sensitive, specific, and precise; that the results are reproducible; and that the platform has a broad dynamic range of quantification. When comparing HCV RNA levels measured in the same individuals with the m2000(sp)-m2000(rt) platform and the third-generation branched-DNA assay, a trend toward a modest overestimation of HCV RNA levels was observed in the m2000(sp)-m2000(rt) platform in all genotypes except genotype 5. The differences, however, were unlikely to have any impact in clinical practice. In conclusion, our study shows that the Abbott m2000 real-time PCR system for HCV RNA quantification is sensitive, specific, and precise; that the results are reproducible; and that the platform's broad dynamic range of quantification is well suited to HCV RNA monitoring in the clinical setting.
Chevaliez
Stéphane
S
French National Reference Center for Viral Hepatitis B, C, and Delta, Department of Virology, Hôpital Henri Mondor, Université Paris 12, and INSERM U955, 94010 Créteil, France.
Bouvier-Alias
Magali
M
Pawlotsky
Jean-Michel
JM
D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000821:virology*; D006801:Humans; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D019562:Viral Load / Q000379:methods*
D012367:RNA, Viral