Molecular Analysis and Ex Vivo Infectivity of Seronegative Occult Hepatitis C Virus: A Study in Single Haemodialysis Centre.

Background: In occult hepatitis C virus infection (OCI), hepatitis C virus ribonucleic acid (HCV RNA) is detectable in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) but is not evident in serum or plasma. Understanding of OCI in patients with seronegative anti-HCV antibodies is limited.

Methods: In this study, six HCV isolates from haemodialysis (HD) patients with seronegative OCI were identified by molecular assays and phylogenetic analysis.