Compared with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), little is known about the susceptibility of HIV-2 to antibody neutralization. We characterized the potency and breadth of neutralizing antibody (NAb) responses in 64 subjects chronically infected with HIV-2 against three primary HIV-2 strains: HIV-27312A, HIV-2ST, and HIV-2UC1. Surprisingly, we observed in a single-cycle JC53bl-13/TZM-bl virus entry assay median reciprocal 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) NAb titers of 1.7 × 105, 2.8 × 104, and 3.3 × 104, respectively. A subset of 5 patient plasma samples tested against a larger panel of 17 HIV-2 strains where the extracellular gp160 domain was substituted into the HIV-27312A proviral backbone showed potent neutralization of all but 4 viruses. The specificity of antibody neutralization was confirmed using IgG purified from patient plasma, HIV-2 Envs cloned by single-genome amplification, viruses grown in human CD4+ T cells and tested for neutralization sensitivity on human CD4+ T target cells, and, as negative controls, env-minus viruses pseudotyped with HIV-1, vesicular stomatitis virus, or murine leukemia virus Env glycoproteins. Human monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) specific for HIV-2 V3 (6.10F), V4 (1.7A), CD4 binding site (CD4bs; 6.10B), CD4 induced (CD4i; 1.4H), and membrane-proximal external region (MPER; 4E10) epitopes potently neutralized the majority of 32 HIV-2 strains bearing Envs from 13 subjects. Patient antibodies competed with V3, V4, and CD4bs MAbs for binding to monomeric HIV-2 gp120 at titers that correlated significantly with NAb titers. HIV-2 MPER antibodies did not contribute to neutralization breadth or potency. These findings indicate that HIV-2 Env is highly immunogenic in natural infection, that high-titer broadly neutralizing antibodies are commonly elicited, and that unlike HIV-1, native HIV-2 Env trimers expose multiple broadly cross-reactive epitopes readily accessible to NAbs.

Background. Viral load may influence the course of human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) infection.

Methods. This case-control study was nested within the 2-year Atypical Squamous Cells of Undetermined Significance and Low-Grade Squamous Intraepithelial Lesion Triage Study, in which women were followed semiannually for HPV and cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). Case patients (n = 62) were women diagnosed with CIN3 following HPV-16–positive detection at a follow-up visit. HPV-16–positive controls (n = 152) without CIN2 or CIN3 were matched to cases based on the follow-up visit in which viral load was measured. Real-time polymerase chain reaction was used for HPV-16 DNA quantification.

Results. The risk of CIN3 increased with increasing HPV-16 DNA load at the follow-up visit (odds ratio, 1.63; 95% confidence interval, 1.33–1.99 per 1 log10 unit increase); the association was not affected by whether HPV-16 was present at enrollment. When HPV-16 was present at both enrollment and follow-up, viral load remained high among cases (P = .77) but decreased substantially among controls (P = .004). Among women with HPV-16 found initially during follow-up, viral load in the first HPV-16–positive sample was associated with short-term persistence; load was higher in those with infection, compared with those without infection, 1 visit after the initial positivity (P = .001).

Conclusions. Viral load of newly detected infections and changes in viral load predict persistence and progression of HPV-16 infections.

BACKGROUND

Characterizing short-term detection patterns of young women’s incident alpha-genus human papillomavirus (HPV) infections may further understanding of HPV transmission.

METHODS

Between 2000–2007, we followed 18–22 year old female university students with triannual HPV DNA and Papanicolau testing. Using Kaplan-Meier methods, we estimated: duration of detectable, type-specific incident infections; time to re-detection (among infections that became undetectable); and time to cervical lesion development after incident infection. We evaluated risk factors for short-term persistent versus transient infection with logistic regression.

RESULTS

303 incident type-specific infections were detected in 85 sexually active women. Median time to first negative test after incident infection was 9.4 (95%CI:7.8–11.2) months; 90.6% of infections became undetectable within two years. 19.4% of infections that became undetectable were re-detected within one year. Cervical lesions were common, and 60% were positive for multiple HPV types in concurrent cervical swabs. Incident HPV detection in the cervix only (versus the vulva/vagina only or both sites) was associated with short-term transience.

CONCLUSIONS

While most incident infections became undetectable within two years, re-detection was not uncommon. Cervical lesions were a common early manifestation of HPV infection.

IMPACT

It remains unclear whether potentially modifiable risk factors can be identified to reduce infection duration (and transmission likelihood).

The presence of certain types of human papillomavirus (HPV) is a known risk factor for the development of anogenital squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs). A similar association has been hypothesized for cutaneous SCCs, although, to our knowledge, no studies to date have combined sensitive HPV DNA detection techniques with epidemiologic data controlling for known risk factors to explore the association. We designed a case–control study examining HPV prevalence using highly sensitive PCR-detection assays in tissue samples from 85 immunocompetent patients with histologically confirmed SCCs and 95 age-matched individuals without a prior history of skin cancer. A standardized interview was administered to all study subjects to collect information pertaining to potential confounding variables. The overall detection rate of HPV DNA was high in case lesions (54%) and perilesions (50%) and in both sun-exposed normal tissue (59%) and non-sun-exposed normal tissue (49%) from controls. In comparing case tissue to control tissue, there was no differential detection of HPV DNA across various HPV species. However, HPV DNA from β-papillomavirus species 2 was more likely to be identified in tumors than in adjacent healthy tissue among cases (paired analysis, odds ratio = 4.0, confidence interval = 1.3–12.0). The high prevalence of HPV DNA detected among controls suggests that HPV DNA is widely distributed among the general population. However, the differential detection of HPV β-papillomavirus species in tumors among cases suggests that certain HPV types may be involved in the progression of cutaneous SCCs.

Prospective studies of the persistence of human papilloma-virus (HPV) variants are rare and typically small. We sequenced HPV-16 variants in longitudinal pairs of specimens from 86 women enrolled in the ASCUS-LSIL Triage Study. A change of variants was identified in 4 women (4.7% [95% confidence interval, 1.3%-11.5%]). Among women with intervening HPV results (n = 60), a variant switch occurred in 2 of 11 who had evidence of intervening negativity for HPV-16, compared with 1 of 49 who consistently tested positive (P = .11). These results suggest the possibility that rare misclassification of transient infections as persistent infections occurs in natural history studies of type-specific HPV infections.

Background

We previously identified a number of genes which were methylated significantly more frequently in the tumor compared to the non-cancerous lung tissues from non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. Detection of methylation profiles of genes in NSCLC could provide insight into differential pathways to malignancy and lead to strategies for better treatment of individuals with NSCLC.

Methods

We determined the DNA methylation status of 27 genes using quantitative MethyLight assays in lung tumor samples from 117 clinically well-characterized NSCLC patients.

Results

Hypermethylation was detected in one of more of the genes in 106 (91%) of 117 cases and was detected at high levels (Percentage of Methylation Reference (PMR)≥4%) in 79% of NSCLC cases. Methylation of APC, CCND2, KCNH5 and, RUNX was significantly more frequent in adenocarcinomas compared to squamous cell carcinomas (SCC), while methylation of CDKN2A was more common in SCC. Hypermethylation of KCNH5, KCNH8, and RARB was more frequent in females compared to males. Hypermethylation of APC and CCND2 was inversely associated with proliferation score assessed by Ki-67 level.

Conclusions

Our findings of differential gene hypermethylation frequencies in tumor tissues from patients with adenocarcinoma or squamous cell cancers and in females compared to males suggests that further investigation is warranted in order to more fully understand the potential disparate pathways and/or risk factors for NSCLC associated with histologic type and gender.

Objective

Estimate the accuracy and cost-effectiveness of cervical cancer screening strategies based on high-risk HPV DNA testing of self-collected vaginal samples.

Materials and Methods

A subset of 1,665 women (18-50 years of age) participating in a cervical cancer screening study were screened by liquid-based cytology and by high-risk HPV DNA testing of both self-collected vaginal swab samples and clinician-collected cervical samples. Women with positive/abnormal screening test results and a subset of women with negative screening test results were triaged to colposcopy. Based on individual and combined test results, five screening strategies were defined. Estimates of sensitivity and specificity for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or worse were calculated and a Markov model was used to estimate the incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) for each strategy.

Results

Compared to cytology-based screening, high-risk HPV DNA testing of self-collected vaginal samples was more sensitive (68%, 95%CI=58%-78% versus 85%, 95%CI=76%-94%) but less specific (89%, 95%CI=86%-91% versus 73%, 95%CI=67%-79%). A strategy of high-risk HPV DNA testing of self-collected vaginal samples followed by cytology triage of HPV positive women, was comparably sensitive (75%, 95%CI=64%-86%) and specific (88%, 95%CI=85%-92%) to cytology-based screening. In-home self-collection for high-risk HPV DNA detection followed by in-clinic cytology triage had a slightly lower lifetime cost and a slightly higher quality-adjusted life expectancy than did cytology-based screening (ICER of triennial screening compared to no screening was $9,871/QALY and $12,878/QALY, respectively).

Conclusions

Triennial screening by high-risk HPV DNA testing of in-home, self-collected vaginal samples followed by in-clinic cytology triage was cost-effective.

Background

Little is known about detection of genital human papillomavirus (HPV) types in women’s fingertips. The study objectives were to determine the presence of genital HPV types in fingertip samples and agreement between fingertip and genital samples for detecting HPV.

Methods

At tri-annual visits, genital and fingertip samples were collected from female university students and tested for 37 HPV genotypes by PCR-based assay. Type-specific concordance between paired fingertip and genital samples was evaluated using a kappa statistic for percent positive agreement (“kappa +”). Paired samples with type-specific concordant fingertip and genital results were selected for variant characterization.

Results

A total of 357 fingertip samples were collected from 128 women. HPV prevalence in fingertip samples was 14.3%. Although percent positive agreement between fingertips and genitals for detecting type-specific HPV was low (17.8%; kappa+=0.17, 95%CI:0.10–0.25), 60.4% of type-specific HPV detected in the fingertips was detected in a concurrent genital sample. All but one of 28 paired concordant samples were positive for the same type-specific variant in the fingertip and genital sample. Re-detection of HPV types at the subsequent visit was more common in genital samples (73.3%) than in fingertip samples (14.5%) (p<.001).

Conclusions

Detection of genital HPV types in the fingertips was not uncommon. While impossible to distinguish between deposition of DNA from the genitals to the fingertips and true fingertip infection, the rarity of repeat detection in the fingertips suggests that deposition is more common.

Impact

Finger-genital transmission is plausible, but unlikely to be a significant source of genital HPV infection.

It remains unknown whether tobacco smoke induces DNA hypermethylation as an early event in carcinogenesis or as a late event, specific to overt cancer tissue. Using MethyLight assays, we analyzed 316 lung tissue samples from 151 cancer-free subjects (121 ever-smokers and 30 never-smokers) for hypermethylation of 19 genes previously observed to be hypermethylated in nonsmall cell lung cancers. Only APC (39%), CCND2 (21%), CDH1 (7%), and RARB (4%) were hypermethylated in >2% of these cancer-free subjects. CCND2 was hypermethylated more frequently in ever-smokers (26%) than in never-smokers (3%). CCND2 hypermethylation was also associated with increased age and upper lobe sample location. APC was frequently hypermethylated in both ever-smokers (41%) and never-smokers (30%). BVES, CDH13, CDKN2A (p16), CDKN2B, DAPK1, IGFBP3, IGSF4, KCNH5, KCNH8, MGMT, OPCML, PCSK6, RASSF1, RUNX, and TMS1 were rarely hypermethylated (<2%) in all subjects. Hypermethylation of CCND2 may reflect a smoking-induced precancerous change in the lung.

We determined the feasibility of human papillomavirus (HPV) detection in cervical exfoliated cells collected as dry swab samples. Both dry cervical swab and specimen transport medium (STM) cervical swab samples were collected from 135 patients attending either colposcopy or women's clinics in Guayaquil, Ecuador, who had a cytology diagnosis within 6 months. HPV was detected by dot blot hybridization and genotyped by the liquid bead microarray assay (LBMA). Overall, 23.1% of dry samples were positive for any high-risk HPV types, and 24.6% of STM samples were positive for any high-risk HPV types. Of 125 paired samples, the type-specific high-risk HPV proportion positive agreement was 60.7% (kappa, 0.69; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.53 to 0.82). Of six women with cytological evidence of invasive cervical cancer, high-risk HPV DNA was detected in three of their STM samples and in five of their dry samples. Dry samples were more likely to be insufficient for HPV testing than STM samples. Consistent with this observation, the amount of genomic DNA quantitated with the β-actin gene was almost 20 times lower in dry samples than in STM samples when detected by the real-time TaqMan assay; however, HPV DNA viral loads in dry samples were only 1.6 times lower than those in matched STM samples. We concluded that exfoliated cervical cells could be collected as dry swab samples for HPV detection.

Background

Studies of viral load-related persistence of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection are rare, with inconsistent results reported.

Methods

Study subjects were 741 and 289 women who were positive for HPV16 and HPV18, respectively, at enrollment into in the ASCUS-LSIL Triage Study and who returned one or more times for HPV testing during a biannual 2-year follow-up. Baseline HPV16 and HPV18 copies per nanogram of cellular DNA were measured by real-time polymerase chain reaction.

Results

Women with, compared to without, persistent infection at month 6 had higher viral load at enrollment (P<0.001 for HPV16; P=0.01 for HPV18). The association of per 1 log10-unit increase in viral load with the first 6-month persistence of HPV16 or HPV18 was statistically significant among women with multiple types at enrollment (OR=1.53, 95% CI, 1.29–1.82 for HPV16; OR=1.35, 95% CI, 1.09–1.68 for HPV18) but not among those with mono-type infections (test for interaction between viral load and coinfection: P=0.002 for HPV16; P=0.34 for HPV18). Among women who continued to be positive at month 6, 12, or 18, persisting for another 6 months was unrelated to baseline viral load.

Conclusion

Higher viral load of prevalent HPV16 or HPV18 infection was associated with short- but not long-term persistence.

Intratypic diversity of human papillomavirus (HPV) genome is generally characterized by point mutation, insertion, and/or deletion. Using PCR-based cloning and sequencing, we detected concurrent infection with 8 HPV16 variants in a woman enrolled in the ASCUS-LSIL Triage Study. The European variant was the major variant; each of the seven minor variants had partial DNA sequences identical to the European variant and another part identical to the African-2 variant. At a follow-up visit, only an HPV16 African-2 variant was detected. Results from the present study suggest presence of intratypic recombination of HPV genome in natural infection.

A robust systematic review finds no evidence that such programmes reduce risky sexual behaviours, incidence of sexually transmitted infections, or pregnancy

To quantify the risk of human papillomavirus (HPV) acquisition associated with a first male sex partner and to identify associated risk factors, we analyzed data from women who were enrolled before or within 3 months of first intercourse with a male partner and were censored at the report of a second partner. The 1-year cumulative incidence of first HPV infection was 28.5% (95% confidence interval, 20.6%–38.6%) and increased to almost 50% by 3 years. The risk was increased when the first male partner was sexually experienced. Our results indicate a high risk of HPV infection in young women who have had just 1 male sex partner.

Objective

Examine the relationship of depot-medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA) and combined oral contraceptive (COC) use with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN).

Study Design

Two case-control studies of women who presented for gynecological care and underwent cytologic and human papillomavirus (HPV) testing were performed. The first included oncogenic HPV-positive women grouped based on histology: negative(n=152), CIN1(n=133), and ≥CIN2-3(n=173). For the second, two groups were identified: negative HPV/negative histology(n=107) and positive oncogenic HPV/negative histology(n=152).

Results

Among oncogenic HPV-positive women, DMPA use was inversely associated with ≥CIN2-3 (adjusted odds ratio[ORadj]=0.4;95% confidence interval[CI]=0.2–1.1) and CIN1 (ORadj=0.1;95% CI=0.01–0.6); COC use was not associated with either. Among histologically negative women, DMPA use was associated with oncogenic HPV (ORadj=4.7;95% CI=1.4–15.8).

Conclusions

Among women with oncogenic HPV, hormonal contraceptive use was not associated with an increased risk of ≥CIN2-3. Longer-term DMPA use may attenuate the colposcopic and histologic features of CIN as women reporting such use were more likely than others to have cervical oncogenic HPV without evidence of CIN.

Background

The clinical relevance of the amount of human papillomavirus type 18 (HPV18) DNA in cervical tissue (ie, HPV18 DNA load) is unknown.

Methods

Study subjects were 303 women who were HPV18 positive at enrollment into the Atypical Squamous Cells of Undetermined Significance (ASC-US) and Low-Grade Squamous Intraepithelial Lesion (LSIL) Triage Study. HPV18 DNA load, expressed as copies of HPV18 per nanogram of cellular DNA, at enrollment was quantitatively measured. Subjects were followed up semiannually for a period of 2 years for detection of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia 2–3 (CIN2–3). A linear regression model was used to examine associations of CIN2–3 with HPV18 DNA load. All statistical tests were two-sided.

Results

CIN2–3 was confirmed in 92 of 303 (30.4%) HPV18-positive women. Among women without CIN2–3, HPV18 DNA load was positively associated with increasing severity of cervical cytology at enrollment (Ptrend < .001). However, among those with CIN2–3, HPV18 DNA load was not associated with severity of cervical cytology at enrollment (Ptrend = .33). The ratios of geometric means of HPV18 DNA load at enrollment among women with CIN2–3, relative to those without, were 6.06 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.31 to 117.92) for those with normal cytology at enrollment, 0.50 (95% CI = 0.10 to 2.44) for those with ASC-US, 0.11 (95% CI = 0.03 to 0.46) for those with LSIL, and 0.07 (95% CI = 0.01 to 0.80) for those with high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL). After adjusting for age and coinfection with other high-risk HPVs, a statistically significant association of lower HPV18 DNA load with CIN2–3 was observed among women with LSIL or HSIL at enrollment (P = .02). Within the 2-year period, HPV18 DNA load was unrelated to the timing of CIN2–3 diagnosis. Overall results were similar when the outcome was CIN3.

Conclusions

HPV18 DNA load was higher for women with LSIL or HSIL at enrollment with no evidence of CIN2–3 during the 2-year follow-up period than it was for women with CIN2–3. Thus, testing for high levels of HPV18 DNA does not appear to be clinically useful.

We used MethyLight assays to analyze DNA methylation status of 27 genes on 49 paired cancerous and noncancerous tissue samples from non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients who underwent surgical resection. Seven genes (RARB, BVES, CDKN2A, KCNH5, RASSF1, CDH13, and RUNX) were found to be methylated significantly more frequently in tumor tissues than in noncancerous tissues. Only methylation of CCND2 and APC was frequently detected in both cancerous and noncancerous tissues, supporting the hypothesis that the methylation of these two genes is a preneoplastic change and may be associated with tobacco smoking exposure. Methylation of any one of eight genes (RASSF1, DAPK1, BVES, CDH13, MGMT, KCNH5, RARB, or CDH1) was present in 80% of NSCLC tissues but only in 14% of noncancerous tissues. Detection of methylation of these genes in blood might have utility in monitoring and detecting tumor recurrence in early-stage NSCLC after curative surgical resection.

Background

Although correlations of cervical cytology to human papillomavirus (HPV) load and histopathology are recognized, it is largely undetermined whether viral load-related risks of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia III (CIN3) differ by cytology.

Methods

Study subjects were 821 women enrolled in the ASCUS-LSIL Triage Study who were positive for HPV16 at entry. Women were followed semi-annually over 2 years. Baseline HPV16 load was measured by real-time PCR; expressed as log10 [HPV16 copies per-nanogram of cellular DNA].

Results

CIN3 was confirmed in 34.8% of 821 women during 2-year follow-up. The adjusted odds ratio (OR) associating 2-year cumulative risk of CIN3 with per log10–unit increase in HPV16 load was 1.46 (95%CI, 1.29-1.64). The ORs varied from 1.66 (95%CI, 1.16-2.37) for women with normal cytology at enrollment to 0.86 (95%CI, 0.61-1.20) for those with HSIL. Among women with normal cytology at enrollment, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for detecting CIN3 by viral load was 0.70 (95%CI, 0.61-0.78).

Conclusion

HPV16 DNA load was associated with CIN3 risk but the associations varied with cytology detected at the time when the viral load was measured. Clinical utility of testing for HPV16 load for CIN3 detection was minimal even in women with normal cytology.

Given that the integration of human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV16) into the host genome occurs preferentially with the disruption of the E2 gene, a ratio of E2 to E7 gene copies is often used as a marker for integration. It is largely undetermined, however, whether ratio estimates are affected by HPV intratypic variations. We assembled four plasmid constructs, each containing a DNA fragment from an HPV16 European, Asian-American, African-1, or African-2 variant. These constructs and nine cervical swab samples were assayed by real-time PCR with two primer-probe sets for each gene: a specific set, fully complementary to the HPV16 prototype, and a degenerate set, incorporating degenerate bases at positions where nucleotides differed among the variants. The ratio of E2 to E7 gene copies for the European variant construct was close to 1, no matter which sets of primers and probes were used. While the ratios for the African-1 and Asian-American variant constructs remained close to 1 with the degenerate sets of primers and probes, the ratios were 0.36 and 2.57, respectively, with the specific sets of primers and probes. In addition, a nucleotide alteration at the position immediately following the 3′ end of the E2 forward primer binding site was found to be responsible for an underestimation of E2 gene copies for the African-2 variant construct. Similar patterns were found in nine cervical samples. In conclusion, mismatches between the primers and probes and their targets due to HPV16 intratypic variations would introduce errors in testing for integration; this situation can be sufficiently ameliorated by incorporating degenerate bases into the primers and probes.

We developed a liquid bead microarray (LBMA) assay for genotyping genital human papillomaviruses (HPVs) based on the MY09-MY11-HMB01 PCR system and the reverse line blot (RLB) assay probe sequences. Using individual HPV plasmids, we were able to detect as few as 50 copies per reaction. In two separate retrospective studies, the LBMA assay was compared to the RLB assay and to the Hybrid Capture II (hc2) assay. Testing was performed without knowledge of other assay results. In the first study, 614 cervical swab samples (enriched for HPV infection) from 160 young women were tested for HPV DNA, and 360 (74.8%) type-specific HPV infections were detected by both assays, 71 (14.8%) by the LBMA assay only, and 50 (10.4%) by the RLB assay only. Type-specific agreement for the two assays was excellent (99.1%; kappa = 0.85; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.82 to 0.88). Samples with discrepant LBMA and RLB test results tended to have low viral loads by a quantitative type-specific PCR assay. In the second study, cervical swab samples from 452 women (including 54 women with histologically confirmed cervical-intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or worse [≥CIN2]) were tested initially by the hc2 and subsequently by the LBMA assay. The estimated sensitivities for ≥CIN2 were similar for the LBMA and hc2 assays (98.4% [95% CI, 95.0 to 100%] and 95.6% [95% CI, 89.2 to 100%], respectively). The percentages of negative results among 398 women without ≥CIN2 were similar for the LBMA and hc2 assays (45% and 50%, respectively). The repeat test reproducibility for 100 samples was 99.1% (kappa = 0.92; 95% CI, 0.90 to 0.95). We conclude that the new LBMA assay will be useful for clinical and epidemiological research.

Objective

To determine the prevalence of pathogens that cause sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in semen from asymptomatic male infertility patients with and without leukocytospermia (LCS), and associations between STIs, inflammatory markers and other semen variables.

Design

Retrospective, controlled study.

Setting

Center for Reproductive Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.

Patient(s)

241 male infertility patients undergoing routine semen analysis; 132 with LCS, and 109 without LCS.

Intervention(s)

None

Main Outcome Measure(s)

DNA from STI pathogens [human papillomavirus (HPV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), herpes simplex virus (HSV), human herpes virus type 6 (HHV-6), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), hepatitis B virus (HBV) and Chlamydia trachomatis (CT)], routine semen parameters and markers of accessory gland and epididymal function and inflammation.

Results

STI DNA was detected in 45/241 (18.7%) of the samples (CMV 8.7%, HPV 4.5%, HHV-6 3.7%, HSV 3.7%, CT 2.5%, EBV 0.4%, and HBV 0%), with no difference in prevalence between LCS and non-LCS groups. STI DNA in semen was associated with a decrease in sperm concentration, motile sperm concentration, total sperm count and neutral α-glucosidase concentration, whereas LCS was associated with a decrease in total sperm count, % normal forms and fructose concentration.

Conclusion(s)

STI pathogen DNA was detected in semen from a high percentage of asymptomatic male infertility patients and was associated with poor semen quality. Efforts to diagnose and treat subclinical genital tract infections should be intensified.

Abstract

Unique viral variants and resistance mutations may occur in the genital tract of HIV-2 ARV-naive infected women. We sequenced and phylogenetically analyzed protease (PR), reverse transcriptase (RT), and envelope (ENV) from PBMC and genital tract samples from four ARV-naive women in Senegal. HIV-2 protease polymorphisms that predict HIV-1 protease inhibitor (PI) resistance were common. Two subjects had protease mutations (T77I and I64V) in genital tract samples that were not found in PBMCs. One subject had the HIV-2 reverse transcriptase M184I mutation in CVL DNA (but not PBMCs) that is known to confer 3TC/FTC resistance in HIV-2. In another subject, the reverse transcriptase A62V mutation was also found in CVL-RNA but not PBMCs. We found no significant difference in ENV variants between PBMCs and the genital tract. HIV-2 RT and PR mutations in the genital tract of ARV-naive females may have implications for transmitted HIV-2 resistance and ARV therapy.

Background

Acquisition of more than one strain of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) has been reported to occur both during and after primary infection, but the risks and repercussions of dual and superinfection are incompletely understood. In this study, we evaluated a longitudinal cohort of chronically HIV-infected men who were sexual partners to determine if individuals acquired their partners' viral strains.

Methodology

Our cohort of HIV-positive men consisted of 8 couples that identified themselves as long-term sexual partners. Viral sequences were isolated from each subject and analyzed using phylogenetic methods. In addition, strain-specific PCR allowed us to search for partners' viruses present at low levels. Finally, we used computational algorithms to evaluate for recombination between partners' viral strains.

Principal Findings/Conclusions

All couples had at least one factor associated with increased risk for acquisition of new HIV strains during the study, including detectable plasma viral load, sexually transmitted infections, and unprotected sex. One subject was dually HIV-1 infected, but neither strain corresponded to that of his partner. Three couples' sequences formed monophyletic clusters at the entry visit, with phylogenetic analysis suggesting that one member of the couple had acquired an HIV strain from his identified partner or that both had acquired it from the same source outside their partnership. The 5 remaining couples initially displayed no evidence of dual infection, using phylogenetic analysis and strain-specific PCR. However, in 1 of these couples, further analysis revealed recombinant viral strains with segments of viral genomes in one subject that may have derived from the enrolled partner. Thus, chronically HIV-1 infected individuals may become superinfected with additional HIV strains from their seroconcordant sexual partners. In some cases, HIV-1 superinfection may become apparent when recombinant viral strains are detected.

Purpose

The aim of this study was to analyze the utility of a mammaglobin multigene RT-PCR assay and a mammaglobin sandwich ELISA to detect peripheral blood samples of breast cancer patients.

Experimental Design

Peripheral blood samples of 147 untreated Senegalese women with biopsy confirmed breast cancer were collected. The samples were tested for mammaglobin and 3 breast cancer associated gene transcripts using a multigene real-time RT-PCR assay and for secreted mammaglobin protein using a sandwich ELISA format. Patient information regarding demographic and clinical staging of disease was also collected.

Results

In 77 % of the breast cancer blood samples a positive expression signal was found using the multigene RT-PCR assay detecting mammaglobin and three complementary transcribed genes. 50 samples from healthy female donors tested negative. Circulating mammaglobin protein was found in 68 % of the breast cancer sera, whereas 38 % showed significantly elevated protein levels in comparison to a mixed control population. Statistical correlations were found between the detection of mammaglobin protein in serum, presence of mammaglobin mRNA expressing cells in blood, stage of disease and tumor size.

Conclusions

The multigene mammaglobin RT-PCR assay and mammaglobin sandwich ELISA could be valuable tools to detect metastatic disease and to monitor therapeutic efficiency. Both assays together provided a diagnostic sensitivity of 83 %. Use of the multigene RT-PCR increased detection sensitivity from 61 to 77 % in comparison to mammaglobin expression alone.

Progressive immune dysfunction and AIDS develop in most cases of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection but in only 25 to 30% of persons with HIV-2 infection. However, the natural history and immunologic responses of individuals with dual HIV-1 and HIV-2 infection are largely undefined. Based on our previous findings, we hypothesized that among patients with dual infection the control of HIV-1 is associated with the ability to respond to HIV-2 Gag epitopes and to maintain HIV-specific CD4+ T-cell responses. To test this, we compared the HIV-specific ex vivo IFN-γ enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assay responses of 19 dually infected individuals to those of persons infected with HIV-1 or HIV-2 only. Further, we assessed the functional profile of HIV Gag-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from nine HIV dually infected patients by using a multicolor intracellular cytokine staining assay. As determined by ELISPOT assay, the magnitude and frequency of IFN-γ-secreting T-cell responses to gene products of HIV-1 were higher than those to gene products of HIV-2 (2.64 versus 1.53 log10 IFN-γ spot-forming cells/106 cells [90% versus 63%, respectively].) Further, HIV-1 Env-, Gag-, and Nef- and HIV-2 Gag-specific responses were common; HIV-2 Nef-specific responses were rare. HIV-specific CD4+ T helper responses were detected in nine of nine dually infected subjects, with the majority of these T cells producing gamma interferon (IFN-γ) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and, to a lesser extent, interleukin-2. The HIV-1 plasma viral load was inversely correlated with HIV-2 Gag-specific IFN-γ-/TNF-α-secreting CD4+ and HIV-2 Gag-specific IFN-γ-secreting CD8+ T cells. In conclusion, the T-cell memory responses associated with containment of single HIV-1 and HIV-2 infection play a similar significant role in the immune control of dual HIV-1 and HIV-2 infection.