9EVALUATION OF 4 PCR SYSTEMS AMPLIFYING DIFFERENT GENOMIC REGIONS FORMOLECULAR DIAGNOSIS OF GB VIRUS-C INFECTIONS

Diagnosis of GB virus C (GBV-C) infection is based on RT-PCR methodolo gy that detects genomic viral RNA. Four sets of primers located in dif ferent genomic regions were compared. These primers were used to ampli fy a reference panel of sera used by the French blood banks, including five positive sera, five negative sera and 10-fold serial dilutions o f one positive serum. Three sets of primers located in the 5'UTR, NS3 and NS5a genomic regions gave comparable results with undiluted sera. When diluted sera were tested, the most sensitive protocol was that us ing a set of primers and a probe selected within the 5'UTR, together w ith a colorimetric detection based on DNA enzyme immunoassay. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.