Plasma HIV-1 tropism and risk of short-term clinical progression to AIDS or death.

Introduction: It is uncertain if plasma HIV-1 tropism is an independent predictor of short-term risk of clinical progression / death, in addition to the CD4 count and HIV RNA level. We conducted a nested case-control study within EuroSIDA to assess this question amongst people with current HIV RNA level >1000 copies/mL, including both people on ART and those ART naïve.

Methods: People with an AIDS diagnosis or who died from any causes for whom there was a stored plasma sample with HIV-1 RNA (VL)≥1,000 copies/mL available in the time window of 3-12 months prior to the event were identified.

Combination of allele-specific detection techniques to quantify minority resistance variants in hepatitis B infection: a novel approach.

Detection of minor variant viral quasispecies of the rtV173L+rtL180M+rtM204V combination mutation in the hepatitis B virus (HBV) polymerase mediating both lamivudine resistance and vaccine escape is potentially important for tracking the development and evolution of resistance within both individuals and populations. A highly sensitive and specific assay to quantitate HBV genomes was developed with this mutation combination directly from viral DNA in serum using allele-specific quantitative PCR with locked nucleic acid primers and a minor groove binder probe. This combination of primers and probe yields a linear detection range down to 150 copies.