[PCR system for the detection of the RNA of hepatitis A virus]

The detection of the causative agent of hepatitis A in the patient's body is the necessary element of the diagnostics of this disease. In this work the PCR system for the analysis of the RNA of hepatitis A virus in the patient's blood is presented and characterized. The method of the detection of the RNA of hepatitis A virus is based on the "nest" principle and consists of two consecutive reactions. In the first reaction the reverse transcription and amplification with the external pair of primers are carried out. The product thus obtained is used as material for the second reaction with the internal pair of primers. This method was used for the study of 44 blood samples from hepatitis A patients and 23 blood samples from healthy donors. The detection rate of the RNA of hepatitis A virus in blood samples from the patients was 82%. Viral RNA could be detected in the serum in 72% of cases, both in the serum and in mononuclear blood cells in 20% of cases, in mononuclear blood cells only in 8% of cases.