Quantitative recovery of proviral HIV-1 DNA from leukocytes by the Dried Buffy Coat Spot method for real-time PCR determination.

The current recommended method for diagnosing HIV-1 in newborns infected vertically and in adults, during the "window period", is the detection of proviral HIV-1 DNA within leukocytes (buffy coat). This study describes a new portable Dried Buffy Coat Spot (DBCS) assay able to provide a quantitative proviral HIV-1 DNA recovery from the buffy coat. Fifty blood samples were collected from HIV-positive children and processed for DBCSs.