Histology is the
gold standard for diagnosing acute rejection and
hepatitis C recurrence after
liver transplantation . However,
differential diagnosis between the two can be difficult. We evaluated the
role of C4d
staining and quantification of
hepatitis C virus (HCV)
RNA levels in
liver tissue . This was a
retrospective study of 98
liver biopsy samples divided into four groups by histological
diagnosis acute rejection in
patients undergoing
liver transplant for
hepatitis C (RejHCV+), HCV
recurrence in
patients undergoing
liver transplant for
hepatitis C (HCVTx+), acute rejection in
patients undergoing
liver transplant for reasons other than
hepatitis C and
chronic hepatitis C not transplanted (HCVTx-). All samples were submitted for immunohistochemical
staining for C4d and HCV
RNA quantification. Immunoexpression of C4d was observed in the portal vessels and was highest in the HCVTx- group. There was no difference in C4d expression between the RejHCV+ and HCVTx+ groups. However,
tissue HCV
RNA levels were higher in the HCVTx+ group samples than in the RejHCV+ group samples. Additionally, there was a significant correlation between
tissue and
serum levels of HCV
RNA . The quantification of HCV
RNA in
liver tissue might prove to be an efficient
diagnostic test for the
recurrence of HCV
infection .