HEPATITIS C VIRUS NS2/3 ASSAY

摘要

The present invention provides an assay for the detection of the NS2/3 cleavage products NS2 or NS3 in the presence of uncleaved NS2/3. Following self-cleavage of NS2/3 to generate NS2 and NS3 cleavage products, a sample is incubated with a ligand specific for the recognition of NS2 or NS3 cleavage product in the presence of uncleaved NS2/3. There is provided a method for detecting a NS2/3 autocleavage product in a sample containing NS2/3 protease, whereby the amount of bound ligand detected correlates with the NS2/3 autocleavage activity. A further aspect of the present invention concerns ligands selectively recognizing one of the NS2 cleavage product or the NS3 cleavage product with minimal cross-reactivity with the uncleaved NS2/3 and the other cleaved product. The present invention provides antibodies that selectively recognize one of cleaved NS2 product or cleaved NS3 product with minimal cross-reactivity with the uncleaved NS2/3 and the other cleaved product.