Reducing Hepatitis C diagnostic disparities with a point of care assay for HCV antigen detection

Viral hepatitis continues to be a significant global health issue, with chronic hepatitis B (HBV) and hepatitis C (HCV) responsible for approximately 1 million deaths each year, primarily due to complications such as liver cancer and cirrhosis. Annually, more than 1.5 million individuals contract HCV, with vulnerable populations, including American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN), being disproportionately affected. Although direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) have proven highly effective, the timely and accurate diagnosis of HCV remains a major challenge, particularly in settings with limited resources. The current two-step HCV testing approach is both costly and time-intensive, often resulting in patient loss before appropriate care is administered. Point-of-care (POC) HCV antigen (Ag) testing presents a viable alternative, offering the potential for early detection, even during the acute phase of infection. However, there is currently no FDA-approved POC HCV Ag test that meets the requ..., , , # Reducing Hepatitis C diagnostic disparities with a point of care assay for HCV antigen detection ## Design files All the designs for the 3d printed objects and laser cut objects used in the manuscript. The file \"3D printing parts.f3d\" contains all the 3D designs of the 3D printed parts used in the manuscript, and can be opened with Autocad Fusion 360. The file \"Layer-1.ai\" contains the 2D designs of laser cutting path of the 1st layer of PMMA sheet of the microfluidic chip used in the manuscript, and can be opened with Adobe Illustrator. The file \"Layer-2.ai\" contains the 2D designs of laser cutting path of the 2nd layer of PMMA sheet of the microfluidic chip used in the manuscript, and can be opened with Adobe Illustrator. The file \"Layer-3.ai\" contains the 2D designs of laser cutting path of the 3rd layer of PMMA sheet of the microfluidic chip used in the manuscript, and can be opened with Adobe Illustrator. The file \"Layer-4.ai\" contains the 2D designs of laser cut...,