Explain how the hypothesis below came up/wasdeveloped based on the initial observations (see below).

Hypothesis: The recombinant-based assay for HCVwill detect HCV antibodies in blood samples of people withhepatitis C or who are carriers of HCV, but not in non-HCVindividuals.

Initial Observations:

I. Hepatitis is a general category of liver diseases. Severaldifferent viral agents have been found to infect the liver andcause inflammation and damage.

II. In the 1940s, researchers identified two forms of viralhepatitis. Infectious hepatitis, or hepatitis A, is transmitted bycontact with feces from infected individuals. Serum hepatitis, orhepatitis B, is transmitted through the blood and other bodyfluids. The hepatitis B virus was isolated in the 1960s and thehepatitis A virus was isolated in the 1970s.

III. Following the isolation of these two viruses, assays weredeveloped in order to identify individuals infected with hepatitisA or hepatitis B viruses.

IV. A form of hepatitis occurs in patients that test negativefor hepatitis A or B. This form of hepatitis, initially callednon-A, non-B hepatitis (NANBH) but now referred to as hepatitis C,represented greater than 90% of transfusion-associatedhepatitis.

V. Hepatitis C causes chronic disease which can lead tocirrhosis of the liver and liver cancer.

VI. A recombinant-based assay for the hepatitis C virus (HCV)has been developed, using RNA isolated from the hepatitis Cvirus.