Comparison of HCV core antigen activity by ELISA and amount of HCV RNA by branched DNA assay

Recently an assay system for direct detection of HCV RNA using a branched DNA probe (branched DNA assay: bDNA assay) has been developed for practical use. Concurrently, a method for direct quantitation of HCV particles by measurement of serum HCV core antigen activity has also been established. We compared the results of serum HCV RNA quantitation by bDNA assay and HCV core antigen measurements, and found a highly significant correlation between the two methods (R2 = 0.816).