BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES This study was conducted by the International Consortium for Blood Safety (ICBS) to identify high-quality test kits for detection of hepatitis B virus (HBV) surface antigen (HBsAg) for the benefit of developing countries. MATERIALS AND METHODS The 70 HBsAg test kits from around the world were evaluated comparatively for their clinical sensitivity, analytical sensitiv...

BACKGROUND Interferon-α/ribavirin combination therapy might promote hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) seroclearance in patients dually infected with hepatitis B and C viruses (HBV/HCV), but the long-term effect remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the rate of and the factors associated with HBsAg seroclearance during long-term follow-up after interferon-α/ribavirin combination therapy in ...

INTRODUCTION The intrahepatic hepatitis B surface antigens (HBsAg) expression is related to disease progression of chronic hepatitis B. We examined the features of intrahepatic HBsAg expression. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of 181 patients with e antigen positive chronic hepatitis B were enrolled. Patterns and semi-quantitative measurement of intrahepatic HBsAg expression were analyzed. The a...

BACKGROUND Presence at the same time of HBsAg and anti-HBs antibodies (HBsAg/Ab) is an entity sometimes encountered in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) carriers. OBJECTIVES This study was designed to characterize such serological profiles and to assess the reliability of serological marker quantification by three commercially available assays in this setting. STUDY DESIGN Among 2578 CHB identified...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Conflicting findings on the possible association between hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg) seropositivity and atherosclerosis have been reported. We examined the association between HBsAg seropositivity and cardiovascular diseases in a cohort of Koreans with a high prevalence of hepatitis B viral infection. METHODS Men (N=521 421) aged 30 to 64 years were catego...

Previously, we identified human liver endonexin II (EII) present on human hepatocyte plasma membrane as a specific hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) binding protein. We also showed the spontaneous development of anti-idiotypic (anti-HBsAg) antibodies in rabbits immunized with EII and in chicken immunized with the F(ab')2 fragment of rabbit anti-EII IgG. These findings suggest the existence of...

One hundred eight patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) underwent serologic testing for HBsAg, antibodies to HBs (anti-HBs), HBc (anti-HBc) and HCV (anti-HCV), and an assay for hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Ten (9.3%) of the 108 patients were positive for HBsAg and 96 (88.8%) were positive for anti-HCV. Both HBsAg and anti-HCV were present in 4 (3.7%...

Thirty-five patients with haemophilia A were studied clinically and serologically between 1971-2 and 1975-6 for evidence of hepatitis B infection. One patient suffered from clinical hepatitis B, and a further eight patients showed antibody responses to hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) consistent with exposure to HBsAg during this period. No evidence for HBsAg exposure was found in 14 patient...

OBJECTIVE To construct and identify multi-gene recombinant expression vector pcDNA3-HBsAg-p30-ROP2. METHOD Primers were designed according to the gene sequences of restriction enzyme cutting site of recombinant pcDNA3-p30-ROP2 and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). The target fragment of HBsAg was amplified and cloned to expression vector pcDNA3-p30-ROP2 by restriction enzyme digestion and ...