QUANTITATIVE DETECTION OF HEPATITIS-B VIRUS-DNA IN HUMAN SERA BY BRANCHED-DNA SIGNAL AMPLIFICATION

Serum samples from 116 patients with hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsA g), from 7 patients without detectable HBsAg and from 71 healthy blood donors were tested by a branched DNA signal amplification (bDNA) meth od. Hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA was detected in 39 (34%) of the 116 sa mples with HBsAg, including 19 (70%) of the 27 patients who were also positive for hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg). In contrast, one of the 7 patients without HBsAg and none of the 71 blood donors were positive f or HBV DNA. The titers of serum HBV DNA did not correlate with the ser um alanine aminotransferase levels. All the samples positive by the bD NA assay were positive by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). However , 59% of the PCR-positive samples were bDNA-negative. None of the PCR- negative samples was positive by the bDNA method. Although the sensiti vity of bDNA method is not entirely satisfactory, it showed excellent specificity and reproducibility. Thus it may be considered as an alter native for quantitative detection of HBV DNA in serum samples of patie nts with relatively high titers of HBV viremia.