Field evaluation of mobility assay for subtyping of HIV-1 described.

2003 SEP 10 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Field evaluation of the gag-based heteroduplex mobility assay for genetic subtyping of circulating recombinant forms of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 described in the Ivory Coast.

According to recent research published in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology, "The gag-based heteroduplex mobility assay (gag-HMA) was evaluated for its ease and reliability in subtyping circulating recombinant forms (CRFs) of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) in Cote d'Ivoire. One hundred thirty-two plasma samples were analyzed blindly for HIV-1 subtypes by sequencing the pol gene and by gag-HMA. DNA sequencing was used as the 'gold standard.'"

"Of the 132 samples sequenced, 108 (82%) were CRF02_AG, 14 (11%) were pure subtype A, 5 (4%) were subtype G, 3 (2%) were subtype D, 1 was CRF01_AE, and 1 was subtype H," reported Souleymane Sawadogo and collaborators at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States and Project RETRO-CI in the Cote d'Ivoire. "The gag-HMA correctly classified 126 (95.5%) of the samples. Of the 108 samples that were classified as CRF02_AG by DNA sequencing, 107 (99%) were correctly identified by gag-HMA, resulting in a positive predictive value of 96.4%."

The researchers concluded, "The gag-HMA seems to ...