Assessment of the Ability of a Fourth-Generation Immunoassay for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Antibody and p24 Antigen To Detect both Acute and Recent HIV Infections in a High-Risk Setting

Abstract

An immunoassay (IA) that simultaneously detects both antibody to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and HIV p24 antigen (Architect HIV Ag/Ab Combo) was evaluated for its ability to detect HIV infection by using a panel of specimens collected from individuals recently infected with HIV type 1 (HIV-1). This IA was found to be capable of detecting the majority (89%) of infections, including 80% of those considered acute infections based on the presence of HIV RNA and the lack of detectable antibody to HIV. Substantial improvements in detection of recent infections by the Architect HIV Ag/Ab Combo relative to previous generations of IAs as well as the capacity to detect acute infections have important implications for HIV prevention strategies.

Performance of the Liaison XL Murex HIV Ab/Ag Test on Clinical Samples Representing Current Epidemic HIV Variants

“…Fourth-generation tests, which detect antibodies against both the virus and the viral antigen p24, are now recommended in France and elsewhere (5,6) due to their great potential for detecting early infections. Indeed, their utilization reduces the diagnostic window by 1 to 3 weeks, depending on the generation of the test in the comparison (7)(8)(9). However, any diagnostic test also has to be able to detect all circulating HIV variants.…”

Insights from the 2010 HIV Diagnostics Conference

“…Pandori's data were based on a panel of well-characterized recent and acute infection specimens [2]. Results were presented showing that 28 out of 35 (80%) acute infection specimens (RNA positive, negative on all antibody tests) in the collection were correctly identified with the automated fourth-generation clinical analyzer (Abbott ARCHITECT).…”

A portable paper-based microfluidic platform for multiplexed electrochemical detection of human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis C virus antibodies in serum

“…27 Tests detecting the presence of serum antibody against the HIV p24 core antigen have been commonly used for clinical HIV diagnosis. 28 For HCV diagnosis, the antibody against HCV core antigen is a commonly used marker and provides accurate test results. 29 We used indirect ELISA to quantify concentrations of HIV and HCV antibodies in serum samples, which is based on the sequential affinity bindings of the viral antigen, viral antibody, and secondary antibody.…”