Hepatitis C virus detection is facilitated by the combined use of c100 protein and GOR epitope.

Assay for the antibody to the c100 protein (anti-c100) lacks sensitivity in terms of detection of hepatitis C virus (HCV) in all samples. The author used anti-c100 and antibody to the GOR epitope (anti-GOR) by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to examine 524 patients with chronic liver disease and 682 volunteer blood donors in Fukuoka, Japan. The prevalence of HCV infection, as revealed by the presence of anti-c100 and/or anti-GOR, was 3.9% in 540 volunteer blood donors, 12.7% in 142 volunteers with abnormal liver function, 7.4% in 135 patients with HBsAg-positive liver disease and 89.5% in 389 patients with non-A, non-B (NANB) liver disease. These results show a higher prevalence than demonstrated only by the anti-c100 in NANB liver disease patients (82.5%, P < 0.01). The concurrence of anti-c100 and anti-GOR in subjects with HCV infection was 23.8% in 21 volunteer blood donors, 44.4% in 18 volunteers with abnormal liver function and 61.2% in 348 NANB liver disease patients. The concurrence seems to increase with deterioration of liver function. We concluded that combination assay for anti-c100 and anti-GOR demonstrated a more accurate prevalence of HCV infection than single assay for anti-c100 among NANB liver disease patients, and that the presence of anti-GOR plays a role in liver disease in anti-HCV-positive subjects.