Le Duong Hoang Huy, Kanokudom Sitthichai, Nguyen Ha Minh, Yorsaeng Ritthideach, Honsawek Sittisak, Vongpunsawad Sompong, Poovorawan Yong
Center of Excellence in Clinical Virology, Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.
Center of Excellence in Osteoarthritis and Musculoskeleton, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.
Viruses. 2024 Nov 29;16(12):1863. doi: 10.3390/v16121863.
The hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, a global health concern, can lead to chronic liver disease. The HCV core antigen (HCVcAg), a viral protein essential for replication, offers a cost-effective alternative to HCV RNA testing, particularly in resource-limited settings. This review explores the significance of HCVcAg, a key protein in the hepatitis C virus, examining its structure, function, and role in the viral life cycle. It also evaluates its clinical use in diagnosis and treatment monitoring, comparing its performance to the standard HCV RNA assay using data from PubMed and Google Scholar. HCVcAg assays show high pooled sensitivity (93.5%) and pooled specificity (99.2%) compared to HCV RNA assays, correlating closely ( = 0.87) with HCV RNA levels. Hence, HCVcAg testing offers a cost-effective way to diagnose active HCV infections and monitor treatment, especially in resource-limited settings, but its sensitivity can vary and standardization is needed. HCVcAg also predicts liver disease progression and assesses liver damage risk, aiding patient management. It helps to identify patients at risk for fibrosis or carcinoma, making it vital in hepatitis C care. HCVcAg testing can expand access to HCV care, simplify management, and contribute to global elimination strategies, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
丙型肝炎病毒（HCV）感染是一个全球卫生问题，可导致慢性肝病。HCV核心抗原（HCVcAg）是病毒复制所必需的一种病毒蛋白，它为HCV RNA检测提供了一种经济高效的替代方法，特别是在资源有限的环境中。本综述探讨了HCVcAg（丙型肝炎病毒中的一种关键蛋白）的重要性，研究了其结构、功能以及在病毒生命周期中的作用。它还评估了其在诊断和治疗监测中的临床应用，并使用来自PubMed和谷歌学术的数据将其性能与标准HCV RNA检测进行了比较。与HCV RNA检测相比，HCVcAg检测显示出较高的合并敏感性（93.5%）和合并特异性（99.2%），与HCV RNA水平密切相关（r = 0.87）。因此，HCVcAg检测为诊断活动性HCV感染和监测治疗提供了一种经济高效的方法，特别是在资源有限的环境中，但其敏感性可能会有所不同，需要进行标准化。HCVcAg还可预测肝病进展并评估肝损伤风险，有助于患者管理。它有助于识别有纤维化或癌症风险的患者，在丙型肝炎护理中至关重要。HCVcAg检测可扩大获得丙型肝炎护理的机会，简化管理，并有助于全球消除策略，特别是在低收入和中等收入国家。
