Novel approach for quantification of hepatitis C virus in liver cirrhosis using real-time reverse transcriptase PCR.

Background: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infects nearly 3% of the population worldwide and is a major cause of acute and chronic infections leading to fibrosis, cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Current laboratory diagnosis of HCV is based on specific antibody detection (anti-hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV)) in serum. As HCV replicates in the liver cells, detection and localization of HCV RNA in liver tissue are vital for diagnosis.