Characteristics and clinical significance of a stabilization assay to detect specific antibodies to reverse transcriptase of human immunodeficiency virus.
Antibodies against reverse transcriptase (RT) of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) have been detected in seropositive subjects by immunoprecipitation, Western immunoblotting, and neutralization assay. Recently, we noticed that the antibodies against RT stabilized RT upon heat inactivation, and we have developed a stabilization assay of RT antibody. Briefly, the RT of HIV-1 is completely inactivated by incubation at 56 degrees C for 20 min, but this inactivation is inhibited in the presence of a specific antibody directed against this molecule. We examined the specificity and clinical significance of this stabilization assay. HIV-1 antibody-positive sera stabilized HIV-1 RT but not HIV-2 RT, whereas half of these sera cross-neutralized HIV-2 RT. Antibody titers against RT determined by the neutralization assay and the stabilization assay were compared with clinical characteristics. Antibodies against HIV-1 RT were much more frequently detected by the stabilization assay than by the neutralization assay. Statistically significant associations were found between stabilizing antibody titer and CD4+ cell number in peripheral blood of patients and also between antibody titer and CD4+/CD8+ ratios. These results indicate that our new stabilization assay to detect specific antibodies against RT of HIV-1 is useful as a clinical marker of infection and progress of the disease.
Division of Biomedical Research, Kitasato Institute Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
M
M
Morita
T
T
Suzuki
K
K
Nakajima
C
C
Shiozawa
M J
MJ
Gill
H
H
Hoshino
D015492:AIDS Serodiagnosis / Q000379:methods*; D000328:Adult; D000918:Antibody Specificity; D015153:Blotting, Western; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D004795:Enzyme Stability; D005260:Female; D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000097:blood* / Q000145:classification; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000276:immunology*; D006358:Hot Temperature; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009500:Neutralization Tests; D012194:RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase / Q000097:blood / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000276:immunology*
D015483:HIV Antibodies; D012194:RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase