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Clinical Significance and Remaining Issues of Anti-HBc Antibody and HBV Core-Related Antigen

Yoshihiko Yano1,2, Itsuko Sato2, Takamitsu Imanishi2

  • 1Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, Kobe 650-0017, Japan.

Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland)
|April 13, 2024
PubMed

Insights

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) core antibody (anti-HBc) and core-related antigen (HBcrAg) are key diagnostic markers. Recent advancements in high-sensitivity assays are reevaluating their clinical significance for predicting disease progression and reactivation.

Area of Science:

  • Hepatology and Virology
  • Clinical Diagnostics and Biomarkers

Background:

  • Hepatitis B virus (HBV) core antibody (anti-HBc) and HBV core-related antigen (HBcrAg) are established serum markers for HBV diagnosis.
  • These markers are derived from the HBV core region and play crucial roles in understanding HBV infection.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the clinical significance of current anti-HBc antibody and HBcrAg assay systems.
  • To summarize the challenges and advancements in the interpretation and standardization of these diagnostic markers.

Main Methods:

  • Review of existing literature on anti-HBc antibody and HBcrAg assays.
  • Analysis of clinical data associated with quantitative assays and high-sensitivity detection methods.

Main Results:

  • Quantitative anti-HBc antibody assays show reevaluated clinical significance, correlating with disease stage, carcinogenesis, and reactivation prediction.
  • New high-sensitivity HBcrAg assays demonstrate diagnostic value, particularly in predicting HBV reactivation.
  • Discrepancies in units across anti-HBc antibody assay systems complicate result interpretation.

Conclusions:

  • Highly sensitive HBcrAg and anti-HBc antibody assays have led to rapid and sensitive detection systems in clinical practice.
  • Standardization of assay systems is challenging due to varying advantages, necessitating caution in result interpretation.
  • The development of a global standard for these markers is anticipated based on accumulated clinical findings.

Keywords:
HBVHBV core-related antigenanti-HBc antibody

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