Comparative yield of HCV RNA testing in blood donors screened by 2.0 versus 3.0 antibody assays.

Background: Two HCV antibody tests (EIA 2.0 [EIA2], Abbott; and the Version 3.0 ELISA [EIA3], Ortho) are currently licensed for screening of US blood donors.

Distribution of hepatitis B virus genotypes among American blood donors determined with a PreS2 epitope enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit.

We genotyped 418 sera from volunteer blood donors from two large, regional blood centers in the United States who were HBsAg positive by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The HBV genotypes were determined by a serological method using a preS2 epitope ELISA kit (Institute of Immunology, Tokyo, Japan) with monoclonal antibodies. Of the 418 samples, the genotypes of 320 could be determined (76.

Fluctuation of serum HCV-RNA levels in untreated blood donors with chronic hepatitis C virus infection.

The hepatitis C virus (HCV)-RNA levels were measured in 281 serum samples from 32 untreated volunteer blood donors prospectively collected over a period of 14-73 months. The HCV-RNA levels were tested by the branched DNA signal amplification assay. The mean HCV-RNA levels of each donor ranged from 4.

Prevalence of and risk factors for antibody to hepatitis E virus seroreactivity among blood donors in Northern California.

To evaluate antibody to hepatitis E virus (anti-HEV) seroreactivity, 5000 US blood donors were tested for anti-HEV by two EIAs: a mosaic protein assay (MPr-EIA) and a recombinant protein assay (RPr-EIA). Overall, 59 (1.2%) were seroreactive by MPr-EIA and 70 (1.

Evaluation of the timing of the booster injection after a primary vaccination against hepatitis A.

To evaluate the long-term efficacy and the timing of booster injection of a lyophilized, inactivated hepatitis A vaccine (HAV), we studied the acquired anti-hepatitis A virus titres in 45 subjects who received either two or three doses of the vaccine. With three doses > or = 0.5 microgram administered at 0, 1 and 6 months, antibody titres increased to approximately half those seen in people with a history of natural hepatitis A infection.