We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress
Sign In
Advertise with Us
LGC Clinical Diagnostics

Download Mobile App




Collaboration to Undertake HIV Resistance Testing in Africa

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 06 Aug 2012
Print article
Sequencing-based diagnostics for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals will be carried out in Africa in order to determine resistance to antiretroviral drugs.

Life Technologies Corp. (Carlsbad, CA, USA) is collaborating with the Southern African Treatment and Resistance Network (SATuRN) to develop a simple-to-answer solution for antiretroviral (ARV) drug resistance testing, which is being made available to African partners at a reasonable cost per test. The test can be run on Life's Applied Biosystems line of Sanger sequencing instruments, which are broadly installed in African hospitals and HIV-testing centers.

Antiretroviral (ARV) drugs for HIV treatment are becoming increasingly available in the developing world but resistance to these drugs develops in many HIV-infected individuals. Resistance can be monitored by genetic sequencing of two viral genes, but current costs have made routine use prohibitive in most African countries.

The methods developed as part of this collaboration have the potential to become the most accurate and cost-effective methods for the diagnosis of resistance pathogens in Africa and the referral of patients for appropriate care. The price of DNA/RNA genotyping is rapidly decreasing as technology evolves rapidly, and the software applications to be used and further developed are all open source and available in Africa.

Additional collaborators on the test development include the Stanford HIV Drug Resistance Database).

"We have trained 1,315 physicians and medical personnel on the interpretation of HIV drug resistance in southern Africa. The region has more than 2 million patients on ARV treatment, and we believe that now is the time for the use of genotyping technology to fight the battle against drug resistance," said Dr. Tulio de Oliveira, director of SATuRN and senior researcher at Wellcome Trust-Africa Centre. "This partnership with LIFE will allow more laboratories to use genotyping techniques, and large surveys on drug resistance to be produced to inform national department of health and policy makers in the region."

SATuRN is a consortium of virologists, clinicians, epidemiologists, bioinformaticians, policy makers, public health specialists, and social scientists working on HIV treatment and care in southern Africa. SATuRN has developed an approach to virological failure clinical management that ensures the delivery of drug resistance genotyping and clinical management to remote clinics without them needing elaborate computer systems or infectious disease specialists on site.

By applying telemedicine and off site laboratories, specialists and physicians from medical centers across the world can review cases, including clinical and resistance data, and give feedback and advice to the clinician managing the patient at the primary clinic.

Life Technologies Corp. is a global biotechnology company. It has more than 50,000 products for agricultural biotechnology, translational research, molecular medicine and diagnostics, stem cell-based therapies, forensics, food safety, and animal health.

Related Links:
Life Technologies Corp.
Saturn
Stanford HIV Drug Resistance Database

Platinum Supplier
ADAMTS-13 Protease Activity Test
ATS-13 Activity Assay
New
Gold Supplier
Anti-Cyclic Citrullinated Peptide Test
GPP-100 Anti-CCP Kit
New
Benchtop Shakers
Innova 40 and 40R
New
Floor Mounted (Walk-in) Hoods
UniMax

Print article
GLOBETECH PUBLISHING LLC

Channels

Clinical Chemistry

view channel
Image: The new assays are designed to run on the B•R•A•H•M•S KRYPTOR compact PLUS clinical chemistry analyzer (Photo courtesy of Thermo Fisher)

Breakthrough Immunoassays to Aid in Risk Assessment of Preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is a life-threatening blood pressure condition that can arise during pregnancy and the postpartum phase. This severe pregnancy complication is a primary cause of maternal and fetal mortality... Read more

Molecular Diagnostics

view channel
Image: The ClarityDX Prostate test can reduce unnecessary prostate biopsies by up to 35% (Photo courtesy of Nanostics)

Innovative Blood Test to Revolutionize Prostate Cancer Detection and Reduce Invasive Biopsies

One in six men will receive a prostate cancer diagnosis during their lives. Thankfully, if caught early, prostate cancer is highly treatable. However, the existing screening process has its limitations.... Read more

Hematology

view channel
Image: The latest FDA clearance has finally brought HemoScreen to its full potential as a true POC hematology analyzer (Photo courtesy of PixCell)

True POC Hematology Analyzer with Direct Capillary Sampling Enhances Ease-of-Use and Testing Throughput

An innovative 5-part differential Complete Blood Count (CBC) analyzer with direct capillary sampling capability significantly simplifies blood sampling and minimizes the pre-analytical process.... Read more

Immunology

view channel
Image: A new test could detect the body’s adaptive immune response to viruses (Photo courtesy of 123RF)

Predictive T-Cell Test Detects Immune Response to Viruses Even Before Antibodies Form

The adaptive immune system is an incredible defense mechanism that allows the human body to identify and mount targeted responses against specific pathogens. T-Cells, a special kind of white blood cell,... Read more

Pathology

view channel
Image: A new microscopy method detects treatment-resistant cancer cells early (Photo courtesy of 123RF)

New Rapid-Live Screening Microscopy Technique Enables Early Detection of Treatment-Resistant Cancer Cells

Chemotherapy serves as an effective tool in the fight against cancer, yet some cancer cells can evade treatment by going into a dormant state known as senescence. These so-called therapy-induced senescent... Read more

Technology

view channel
Image: A new electrochemical device can quickly and inexpensively identify people at greatest risk for osteoporosis (Photo courtesy of ACS Central Science, 2023)

Electrochemical Device Identifies People at Higher Risk for Osteoporosis Using Single Blood Drop

With the global increase in life expectancy, the incidence of age-related conditions like osteoporosis is increasing. Osteoporosis, affecting around 200 million individuals worldwide, has a higher incidence... Read more

Industry

view channel
Image: AACC Middle East is a two-day conference that brings the latest in laboratory medicine to the Middle East region (Photo courtesy of ADLM)

AACC Middle East 2023 to Explore Latest Trends in Clinical Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

The AACC Middle East Conference and Exposition will be held by the Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine (ADLM - formerly AACC, Washington, DC, USA) in partnership with Life Dx (Abu Dhabi,... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2023 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.