Patent ID: 7364860

Claim:
A method for detecting, in vitro, a hepatitis C virus (HCV) in a biological sample, comprising simultaneous detection of when present in the biological sample, at least one HCV antigen and an anti-HCV antibody, the method comprising a) contacting the biological sample with a HCV capture antibody and a HCV capture antigen attached to a solid phase; b) incubating the mixture under conditions allowing formation of antigen-antibody complexes; c) separating the solid phase from the liquid phase; d) revealing the antigen-antibody complexes formed by contacting the solid phase with, firstly, a labeled detection antibody capable of binding the HCV antigen which has been captured and, secondly, a labeled anti-immunoglobulin or anti-isotype antibody, or a labeled detection antigen, capable of binding the anti-HCV antibody which has been captured; each of the antigen for capturing and the antigen for detecting anti-HCV antibodies comprising an antigenic fragment of the capsid protein of HCV, in which two epitopes have been destroyed, the capture and detection antibodies each recognizing one of said epitopes, which are intact, of the capsid antigen which has been captured, and in which the capture antibody and the detection antibody each recognize an epitope selected from the group of epitopes having the following sequences: 44 LGVR47 (SEQ ID NO: 19), 30IVGGVYL36 (SEQ ID NO: 20), 29QIVGGV34 (SEQ ID NO: 21).