Specific Detection of Negative Strand RNA of Hepatitis C Virus Using Chemical RNA Modification

Hepatitis C virus (HCV), the genome of which was molecularly cloned in the US and Japan, causes most, if not all, cases of posttransfusional non-A, non-B hepatitis (NANBH) and nearly half those of sporadic hepatitis. Prospective and retrospective studies revealed that nearly half of patients with acute infection develop a chronic state of HCV infection, and half of them develop to liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma.