Human retroviruses such as HTLV-I, HTLV-II and HIV-2 are important etiological agents in human disease. The human T-lymphotropic viruses are implicated in various leukemias and myelopathies in humans. HIV-2 has been implicated in the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is, therefore, important to ensure that the blood supply is safe from retrovirus infection. The experiments outline in this proposal are designed to provide a mass screening strategy which is fast, sensitive, and cost efficient for the detection of these viruses, especially during the early stages of infection before the production of virus-specific antibody. The test will be based on the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The PCR is a method for the amplification of specific DNA sequences by repeated cycles of DNA synthesis. We propose to: 1. Develop a rapid lysis method to simplify specimen preparation. 2. Evaluate the feasibility of testing pooled specimen to reduce the number of tests which need to be performed. 3. Evaluate the efficacy of common primers for the simultaneous detection of all three viruses in a single test. 4. Field test the mass screening strategy in a blood collection setting once the efficacy of the system is proven.
| Sevall, J S; Prince, H; Garratty, G et al. (1993) Rapid enzymatic analysis for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 DNA in clinical specimens. Clin Chem 39:433-9 |
