title: Determination of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 subtypes by a rapid method useful for the routine diagnostic laboratory.
abstract: The existence of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) subtypes has many important implications for the global evolution of HIV and for the evaluation of pathogenicity, transmissibility, and candidate HIV vaccines. The aim of this study was to establish a rapid method for determination of HIV-1 subtypes useful for a routine diagnostic laboratory and to investigate the distribution of HIV-1 subtypes in Austrian patients. Samples were tested by a subtyping method based on a 1.3-kb sequence of the polymerase gene generated by a commercially available drug resistance assay. The generated sequence was subtyped by means of an HIV sequence database. Results of 74 routine samples revealed subtype B (71.6%) as the predominant subtype, followed by subtype A (13.5%) and subtype C (6.8%). Subtypes E, F, G, and AE (CM240) were also detected. This subtyping method was found to be very easy to handle, rapid, and inexpensive and has proved suitable for high-throughput routine diagnostic laboratories. The specific polymerase gene sequence, however, must be existent.
authors.affiliation: Molecular Diagnostics Laboratory, Institute of Hygiene, Karl-Franzens-University Graz, Universitaetsplatz 4, A-8010 Graz, Austria. harald.kessler@uni-graz.at
authors.forename: H H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Kessler
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Deuretzbacher
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Stelzl
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Daghofer
authors.forename: B I
authors.initials: BI
authors.lastname: Santner
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Marth
mesh_terms: D002648:Child; D019951:DNA Polymerase beta / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000201:enzymology / Q000821:virology*; D054303:HIV Reverse Transcriptase / Q000235:genetics; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012319:RNA Polymerase II / Q000235:genetics; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic / Q000821:virology*; D012703:Serotyping / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic; D012319:RNA Polymerase II; D054303:HIV Reverse Transcriptase; D019951:DNA Polymerase beta