Feasibility of using dried blood spots for HIV viral load testing among HIV‐infected individuals in Thailand using QIAGEN QIAsymphony‐artus HIV‐1 platform

Abstract

In settings where plasma preparation and sample centralization are not feasible or inconvenient, dried blood spots (DBS) could be used as an alternative specimen to plasma to assess antiretroviral treatment response among HIV-infected individuals.This study was aimed to (1) validate the recent QIAsymphony-artus assay for DBS HIV viral load (VL) and (2) assess the feasibility of measuring HIV VL on DBS using this assay in Thailand. Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid-blood samples from 99 HIVinfected individuals were used to prepare paired DBS and plasma. Also, DBS samples were shipped to three distant hospitals in the northern region. After short-term storage, DBS were returned by regular post to the AMS laboratory and were retested for HIV VL using the same platform. HIV VL results were compared using Pearson's correlation and Bland-Altman analysis. DBS HIV VL fairly correlated to plasma HIV VL (R = 0.62) with a mean difference of 0.02 log 10 IU/mL (SD = 1.06). A high correlation (R = 0.79) was observed between HIV VL in DBS before and after shipping (mean difference = 0.14 log 10 IU/mL, SD = 0.74), indicating good stability of HIV RNA in DBS. DBS can be used as an alternative specimen for HIV VL monitoring in Thailand. However, measurement of HIV VL with the QIAGEN QIAsymphony-artus assay should be improved, especially the DBS pre-extraction process. K E Y W O R D S DBS, HIV RNA load, HIV RNA measurement, HIV RNA quantification, performance, plasma viral load The research was performed at

HIV RNA measurement in dried blood spots of HIV-infected patients in Thailand using Abbott m2000 system

“…Six milliliters of whole blood were collected by venous puncture and transferred into an EDTA tube. Dried blood spots were prepared as previously described [17,18]. Briefly, whole blood was dispensed in 5 spots of 50 μL each onto a Whatman 9031 Protein Saver Card (Whatman, UK) and dried overnight at ambient temperature (25-30˚C).…”

Stability of Human Immunodeficiency Virus 1 and 2 Antibody in Dried Blood Spot: A Pilot Study

“…Environmental condition directly affects the stability of antibody and nucleic acid of HIV. High temperature and humidity during shipment of DBS did not affect the HIV viral load [10]. DBS sample can be used as an alternative specimen with minimum biohazard risk and transmissible due to lose of infectivity of sample in filter paper matrix during drying [11].…”