New research shows that a combination of urine and blood-based tests can detect antibodies to the human immunodeficiency virus, type 1 (HIV-1) with greater sensitivity than can be achieved by either test alone.
The insurance industry would be particularly interested in this news. More people could be tested more accurately--they can't pass it up!!
Howard Urnovitz is the founder of Calypte Biomedical Corp. He has been working on this for quite sometime and is well-known in the biomedical research industry. Smaller studies were conducted have been published. Now, since we have FDA approval, this news yesterday of the larger study showing similar results this will only help in the marketing of the urine test.
Here is an article published in 1993:
aegis.com
"Rare HIV Antibody Response May Help Develop Vaccine--Study"
Reuters (12/09/93)
by Brothers, Caroline
Abstract:
London--A previously unknown antibody response to the AIDS virus has been discovered, and could be an important step toward developing a vaccine, announced U.S. researchers writing in the medical journal the Lancet. The researchers said they found a handful of patients who had HIV antibodies in their urine, but not in their blood. They believe those patients have developed a rare type of immunity to HIV infection.
Dr. Howard Urnovitz, founder of the U.S.-based Calypte biomedical research firm, worked with Dr. Gene Shearer and Dr. Mario Clerici of the National Cancer Institute to test some 1,800 people for HIV. They found seven who tested positive only in the urine test. "Our first major conclusion was that you can have antibodies in urine and not in blood--one of the first examples of compartmentalism of immune response," he said.
Compartmentalism is thought to occur when the body evolves a localized response to infections specific to each tissue site. "Because they showed this unique immunity, the suggestion was made that perhaps they have a systemic immunity to the virus ... which happens independently of antibody immunity," explained Urnovitz.
He speculated that the discovery of cell-mediated immunity to HIV in urine suggests that vaccine development should concentrate on cell-mediated immunity, rather than the development of an antibody.
Copyright c 1993 - Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD. This information is provided by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), National AIDS Clearinghouse as a public service. Non-profit reproduction is encouraged. |
