Journal article

Publication year: 2009

Pages: 124-128

Journal: Journal of Clinical Virology

Volume number: 46

Issue number: 2

ISSN: 1386-6532

eISSN: 1873-5967

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcv.2009.06.018

Publisher: Elsevier

Abstract: 

Background: Core antigen (HBcAg) is the most immunogenic component of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and is believed to induce virtually always antibodies (anti-HBc) in immunocompetent infected persons. However, some chronically infected persons do not develop detectable anti-HBc.

Objective: A more sensitive assay for anti-HBc was to be developed and used to re-evaluate a cohort of chronically HBV infected persons without detectable anti-HBc.

Study design: Among 3309 serum samples which had been tested by commercially available (microparticle) enzyme immune assay (M/EIA) 34 samples from 22 patients were identified having reacted positive for HBsAg and negative for anti-HBc. Nine of these patients had immunosuppression or HIV coinfection, 13 patients were immunocompetent, 5 of them were perinatally infected.

Anti-HBc was re-tested for in an immune precipitation (IP) assay using P-32-labelled recombinant HBcAg as reagent and anti-human-IgG-coated magnetic beads as separation system for immunecomplexes containing HBcAg. Specificity was controlled for by competition with unlabelled HBcAg.

Results: 27 serum samples from the 22 patients could be retested. IP was positive in 7 MEIA negative sera, unspecific positive in 4 and negative in 16. Using 5 anti-HBe positive control sera, we found IP to be 1.8-fold (1.3-2.9) more sensitive than MEIA, but IP was 6.5-fold (5.8-7.4) more sensitive with 4 anti-HBc negative, anti-HBc positive sera.

Conclusion: IP allowed specific detection of anti-HBc in about 25% of MEIA negative chronic HBV patients. The majority of these seem to produce no or very little anti-HBc, however. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Harvard Citation style: Kantelhardt, V., Schwarz, A., Wend, U., Schuettler, C., Willems, W., Trimoulet, P., et al. (2009) Re-evaluation of anti-HBc non-reactive serum samples from patients with persistent hepatitis B infection by immune precipitation with labelled HBV core antigen, Journal of Clinical Virology, 46(2), pp. 124-128. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcv.2009.06.018

APA Citation style: Kantelhardt, V., Schwarz, A., Wend, U., Schuettler, C., Willems, W., Trimoulet, P., Fleury, H., Gerlich, W., & Kann, M. (2009). Re-evaluation of anti-HBc non-reactive serum samples from patients with persistent hepatitis B infection by immune precipitation with labelled HBV core antigen. Journal of Clinical Virology. 46(2), 124-128. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcv.2009.06.018