Question

A nurse experienced an accidental needle stick while treating a patient who has hepatitis C. The seroconversion window for hepatitis C is approximately 6-8 weeks. Given this information, which of the following viral detection methods would be most appropriate for detecting a hepatitis C infection in the nurse one week following the needle stick? A nurse experienced an accidental needle stick while treating a patient who has hepatitis C. The seroconversion window for hepatitis C is approximately 6-8 weeks. Given this information, which of the following viral detection methods would be most appropriate for detecting a hepatitis C infection in the nurse one week following the needle stick?

a. ELISA-based detection of anti-hepatitis C antibodies

b. PCR-based detection of hepatitis C RNA

c. Modified latex agglutination test for detection of anti-hepatitis C antibodies

d. Plaque assay

Answer 1

b. PCR-based detection of hepatitis C RNA.

After seroconversion, we will be able to detect the antibody in any person's body. The seroconversion period for the hepatitis C virus is 6 to 8 weeks but we need to detect the virus within 1 week after the needle stick, so PCR-based detection of hepatitis C RNA is a more convenient method. In this PCR based method, we will use a specific set of primers which will amplify the viral RNA in the collected sample, specifically blood sample. Here, we can first use RT-PCR to convert the viral RNA to cDNA and then amplify the cDNA by using another set of primers and run in the agarose gel electrophoresis for the detection.