Skip to main content
Infection and Immunity logoLink to Infection and Immunity
. 1982 Apr;36(1):320–324. doi: 10.1128/iai.36.1.320-324.1982

Detection of hepatitis A antigen in human liver.

Y K Shimizu, T Shikata, P R Beninger, M Sata, H Setoyama, H Abe, K Tanikawa
PMCID: PMC351221  PMID: 6281190

Abstract

For the first time, hepatitis A viral antigen (HAAg) was shown in liver biopsy tissue from a patient in the acute phase of hepatitis type A by light and electron microscopy, using the peroxidase-antibody technique. Under light microscopy, the staining for HAAg appeared as a fine, granular reaction product, scattered throughout the cytoplasm of hepatocytes and sinusoidal lining cells. Standard thin-section electron microscopy revealed virus-like particles, 24 to 27 nm in diameter, in cytoplasmic vesicles of hepatocytes and Kupffer cells. By immunoperoxidase electron microscopy, HAAg was detected on particles aggregated within cytoplasmic vesicles of hepatocytes, thus demonstrating that the virus-like particles (24 to 27 nm) are hepatitis A virus. The surrounding membrane of the vesicles was also positive for HAAg. The distribution patterns of HAAg in human liver were virtually identical to those described for experimentally infected marmosets. It is notable that most HAAg was detected within vesicles of liver cell cytoplasm, suggesting the possibility of vesicle-oriented morphogenesis of hepatitis A virus.

Full text

PDF
321

Images in this article

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Daemer R. J., Feinstone S. M., Gust I. D., Purcell R. H. Propagation of human hepatitis A virus in African green monkey kidney cell culture: primary isolation and serial passage. Infect Immun. 1981 Apr;32(1):388–393. doi: 10.1128/iai.32.1.388-393.1981. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Dienstag J. L., Feinstone S. M., Purcell R. H., Hoofnagle J. H., Barker L. F., London W. T., Popper H., Peterson J. M., Kapikian A. Z. Experimental infection of chimpanzees with hepatitis A virus. J Infect Dis. 1975 Nov;132(5):532–545. doi: 10.1093/infdis/132.5.532. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. McLean I. W., Nakane P. K. Periodate-lysine-paraformaldehyde fixative. A new fixation for immunoelectron microscopy. J Histochem Cytochem. 1974 Dec;22(12):1077–1083. doi: 10.1177/22.12.1077. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Nakane P. K., Kawaoi A. Peroxidase-labeled antibody. A new method of conjugation. J Histochem Cytochem. 1974 Dec;22(12):1084–1091. doi: 10.1177/22.12.1084. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Schulman A. N., Dienstag J. L., Jackson D. R., Hoofnagle J. H., Gerety R. J., Purcell R. H., Barker L. F. Hepatitis A antigen particles in liver, bile, and stool of chimpanzees. J Infect Dis. 1976 Jul;134(1):80–84. doi: 10.1093/infdis/134.1.80. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Shimizu Y. K., Mathiesen L. R., Lorenz D., Drucker J., Feinstone S. M., Wagner J. A., Purcell R. H. Localization of hepatitis A antigen in liver tissue by peroxidase-conjugated antibody method: light and electron microscopic studies. J Immunol. 1978 Nov;121(5):1671–1679. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Infection and Immunity are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES