Rapid Genotyping of Hepatitis C Virus

To the Editor: Rapid identification of the genotype of an isolate of hepatitis C virus (HCV) obtained from an organ donor may offer a means of preventing infection by new, genetically different viruses in recipients who are already HCV-positive.1 Current methods of determining HCV genotypes require at least two or three days. A faster, direct polymerase-chain-reaction (PCR) method that uses serum without the need for purification2 has been further modified in our laboratory by shortening the amplification cycles and changing the dilutions of the sample. Coupled with the appropriate use of restriction enzymes, this method can be used to determine . . .