Diagnostics for sensitive HIV detection
- *Abstract
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UMass Medical School investigators have developed a highlysensitive assay that can predict the onset of drug resistance before patientsfail antiretroviral drug therapy. The PCR based assay detects intracellularHIV genetic material, specifically circular DNA containing two LTRs (2-LTR). This assay is based on the discovery that 2-LTR circles are found in patientsundergoing drug therapy who have undetectable serum virus levels. The 2-LTRcircles are a labile intermediate in HIV life cycles & the presence of thesame in patients indicates the persistence of HIV. Because of their unique structure,2-LTR circles can be selectively & specifically identified from thebackground of defective & latent viral genomes. Further, drug resistantmutations, which occur at very low frequencies in a sea of drug-naïvegenotypes, are overrepresented in 2-LTR circles.
- Country/Region
- USA
