Lutz-Friedrich R, Grubert TA, Dathe O, Stauber M, Notheis G, Wintergerst U, Solder B, Belohradsky BH, Eberle J, Gurtler L; International Conference on AIDS.
Int Conf AIDS. 1996 Jul 7-12; 11: 365 (abstract no. Tu.C.2578).
I. Frauenklinik der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat, Munich, Germany. Fax: ++49-89-5160 4139. E-mail: Thomas.Grubert@munich.netsurf.de.
Objective: To determine the role of viral burden of the pregnant women, measured by quantitative competitive - PCR (QC-PCR) quantitation of RNA plasma levels for the vertical transmission of HIV-1. Methods: In a cohort of 41 HIV-positive women we monitored CD4-cell counts, p24-antigen levels and the possibility of virus isolation by cell culture during pregnancy. 8 children of these women were infected (8/41 = 19,5 %). We were able to quantitate retrospectively maternal plasma HIV-1 RNA levels by QC-RT-RNA-PCR (Fa. Roche) in the blood of 6 mothers of infected children. We compared the results with a control group of HIV-positive mothers of healthy children, matched by maternal CDC-status and CD4-cell counts. In a second, still ongoing study, we used the serial quantitation of maternal RNA plasma levels as monitoring for AZT efficiacy in pregnancy in correlation with CD4-cell counts, p24 antigen and vertical transmission rate. Results: We observed correlations between p24 antigen and RNA plasma levels as well as CD4-cell counts and RNA plasma levels, but none of them correlated statistically significant. The RNA plasma levels of the transmitting mothers in comparison to the non transmitting control group did not allow to define a transmission threshold. Especially in African women the measured RNA plasma levels were exceedingly low, which might indicate that particular HIV subtypes other than B are not sufficiently identified by the applied method. Conclusions: Up to now we cannot find a well defined limit of RNA plasma level as a threshold for vertical transmission. The quantitation of RNA plasma levels was strongly biased by the HIV-1 subtype, suggesting that especially African HIV subtypes might not be sufficiently detected by the applied QC-PCR-method.
Publication Types:
Keywords:
- Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
- CD4 Lymphocyte Count
- Case-Control Studies
- Child
- Disease Transmission, Vertical
- Female
- HIV Infections
- HIV Seropositivity
- HIV-1
- Humans
- Labor, Obstetric
- Polymerase Chain Reaction
- Pregnancy
- Pregnancy Complications, Infectious
- Pregnancy Trimester, Second
- Pregnancy Trimester, Third
- RNA
- RNA, Viral
- Viral Load
- Zidovudine
- transmission
Other ID:
UI: 102218660
From Meeting Abstracts