Early Diagnosis of Hepatitis B by Dane Particle Associated DNA Polymerase Assay

• Published in: Journal of general virology Vol. 36; no. 1; pp. 217 - 220
• Main Authors: Cappel, R, de Cuyper, F, van Beers, D, Toppet, M, Cadranel, S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Soc General Microbiol 01.07.1977
• Subjects: Antibodies, Viral - analysis; Clinical Enzyme Tests; Diagnosis, Differential; DNA-Directed DNA Polymerase - blood; Evaluation Studies as Topic; Hepatitis B - diagnosis; Hepatitis B - immunology; Hepatitis B Antigens - analysis; Humans; Radioimmunoassay; Renal Dialysis
• ISSN: 0022-1317; 1465-2099
• DOI: 10.1099/0022-1317-36-1-217

Department of Virology Institut Pasteur du Brabant D. van Beers Department of Microbiology Hôpital Universitaire Brugmann M. Toppet and S. Cadranel Department of Paediatrics Hôpital Universitaire St. Pierre, Brussels Belgium We have studied prospectively 178 subjects exposed to hepatitis B and 120 haemodialysed patients for the presence of HB 8 antigen, e antigen and DNA polymerase as well as for anti-HB 8 and anti-HB c antibodies. The results suggest that the DNA polymerase assay enables us to diagnose hepatitis B earlier than the radioimmunoassay for HB 8 and that DNA polymerase might be present in the blood in the absence of HB 8 in cases of confirmed hepatitis B. A positive correlation between e antigen and DNA polymerase was observed in 83% of the patients on haemodialysis who developed hepatitis B but only in 9% of normal patients developing the same disease. Received 28 January 1977; accepted 8 March 1977.