Oral fluid as a specimen for detection and confirmation of antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus type 1

Abstract

Paired serum and oral fluid specimens (n ‫؍‬ 287) were collected with the Omni-Sal device and were assayed for the presence of antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Enzyme immunoassays (EIAs)-Abbott 3A11, an Organon Teknika Corporation research-use-only test, and the Murex GACELISAwere used per the manufacturers' inserts or were modified slightly to accommodate the oral fluid specimens. Compared with serum Western blot (immunoblot) results, each EIA had a sensitivity of 100% and the specificities were 89.6% for the Abbott 3A11 EIA, 96.5% for the GACELISA, and 97.8% for the Organon Teknika Corporation EIA. Specificities based on specimens that were repeatedly reactive were 99.3% for all EIAs. A miniaturized Western blot technique used for confirmatory testing of both the serum and oral fluid specimens found 149 of the 287 samples to be HIV-1 antibody positive in both sample types. The Western blot banding patterns observed for the serum and oral fluid specimens were essentially identical. Immunoglobulin G concentrations were determined for all oral fluid specimens and ranged from <0.5 to >40.0 g/ml. Immunoglobulin G concentrations did not correlate with the ability of any of the EIAs to detect HIV-1-specific antibody or with the ability of the modified Western blot to detect HIV-1 protein-specific antibodies.

Inhibitory effects of whole and parotid saliva on immunomodulators

“…Accordingly, antibodies in saliva have been used as an indicator of infection status (e.g. antibodies to HIV) (6,9,11,13). This, together with the ease of collection, makes saliva a potentially effective biological fluid to be used as a diagnostic tool and a predictor of overall health status (9,11,18,28,31).…”

Detection of Antibodies to Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 in Oral Fluids: A Large-Scale Evaluation of Immunoassay Performance

“…WB results. OFWB has been shown to yield banding patterns comparable to those observed for matched serum specimens which were also tested by WB (20). In this study, we compared OFWB banding patterns to those generated with matched serum specimens by using the FDA-licensed Cambridge WB.…”

“…according to the manufacturer's protocols. OF specimens were assayed by miniaturized WB (OFWB) as previously described, with a few modifications (20). Following specimen incubation, the conjugate (goat anti-human IgG HϩL alkaline phosphatase; Kirkegaard and Perry Laboratories, Gaithersburg, Md.)…”

“…Quantitative IgG immunoassay. Quantitation of human IgG in OF was performed according to the in-house immunoassay method previously described (20). Specimens were diluted 1:1,000 in 0.15 M phosphate-buffered buffered saline, pH 7.2, so that the optical density measurements for the samples would fall on a standard curve.…”

“…Recently, an FDA-approved WB method which improves specific HIV antibody detection in OF was introduced (17). Our previous report described a miniaturized WB technique which allowed detection of HIV antibody banding patterns consistent with those derived from matched serum specimens (20).…”