Viral load, CD4+ T-lymphocyte counts and antibody titres in HIV-1 infected untreated children in Kenya; implication for immunodeficiency and AIDS progression.

Background: There are limited reports on HIV-1 RNA load, CD4+ T-lymphocytes and antibody responses in relation to disease progression in HIV-1 infected untreated children in Africa.

Methods: To describe the relationships between these parameters, we conducted a longitudinal cohort study involving 51 perinatally HIV-1 infected children aged between 1 and 13 years. HIV status was determined by ELISA and confirmed by western blot and PCR.

Seroprevalence of simian immunodeficiency virus in wild and captive born Sykes' monkeys (Cercopithecus mitis) in Kenya.

Background: The Sykes' monkey and related forms (Cercopithecus mitis) make up an abundant, widespread and morphologically diverse species complex in eastern Africa that naturally harbors a distinct simian immunodeficiency virus (SIVsyk). We carried out a retrospective serological survey of SIV infection from both wild and captive Sykes' monkeys from Kenya. We compared two commercially available, cross-reactive ELISA tests using HIV antigens with a novel SIVsyk antigen-specific Western blot assay and analyzed the data by origin, subspecies, age and sex.