Figure 1.

Fluctuating HCV RNA level during acute infection. Spontaneous clearance (SC) occurred in one subject, and persistence developed in seven others. A solid triangle indicates detectable HCV RNA. An open triangle indicates an HCV RNA level of less than 50 IU/ml. A gray inverted triangle indicates that IFN-γ ELISPOT analysis of T cell responses was performed at that time point. The number in the bottom right corner of each panel is the subject number. Subject 28 entered the study antibody negative and HCV RNA positive so that the time of infection is estimated using the average time from infection to seroconversion.