AN ELISA FOR DETECTION OF ANTIBODIES TO THE E2 PROTEIN OF GB VIRUS C

An ELISA was developed for detection of antibodies to GB virus C (GBV- C) using a recombinant E2 protein expressed in CHO cells, Seroconversi on to anti-E2 positivity was noted among several persons infected with GBV-C RNA-positive blood through transfusion, Of 6 blood recipients i nfected by GBV-C RNA-positive donors, 4 (67%) became anti-E2 positive and cleared their viremia. Thus, anti-E2 seroconversion is associated with viral clearance, The prevalence of antibodies to E2 was relativel y low (3.0%-8.1%) in volunteer blood donors but was higher in several other groups, including plasmapheresis donors (34.0%), intravenous dru g users (85.2%);and West African subjects (13.3%), all of whom tested negative by GBV-C reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT- PCR), These data demonstrate that testing for anti-E2 should greatly e xtend the ability of RT-PCR to define the epidemiology and clinical si gnificance of GBV-C.