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Journal of Clinical Microbiology, May 2009, p. 1491-1496, Vol. 47, No. 5
0095-1137/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.02354-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Dried-Plasma Transport Using a Novel Matrix and Collection System for Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Hepatitis C Virus Virologic Testing{triangledown}

R. M. Lloyd Jr.,1 D. A. Burns,1 J. T. Huong,1 R. L. Mathis,1 M. A. Winters,2,3 M. Tanner,4 A. De La Rosa,5 B. Yen-Lieberman,6 W. Armstrong,6 A. Taege,6 D. R. McClernon,7 J. L. Wetshtein,1 Brian M. Friedrich,8 Monique R. Ferguson,8 William O'Brien,9 P. M. Feorino,1 and M. Holodniy2,3*

Research Think Tank, Inc., Buford, Georgia,1 VA Palo Alto Healthcare System, Palo Alto, California,2 Division of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California,3 Family HealthCare of Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia,4 Pharmasset, Inc., Princeton, New Jersey,5 Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio,6 McClernon LLC, Cary, North Carolina,7 University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas,8 Zirus, Inc., Buford, Georgia9

Received 8 December 2008/ Returned for modification 20 January 2009/ Accepted 10 February 2009

A novel method for the collection and transportation of dried-blood-plasma samples, SampleTanker (ST), was developed and compared to standard shipping protocols for frozen-plasma specimens containing human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and/or hepatitis C virus (HCV). Matched frozen and dried 1-ml EDTA-containing plasma samples were collected and analyzed by several molecular-based virologic assays. After addition of 1.175 ml of reconstitution buffer, 1.035 ml of dried plasma was recovered. Mean intra-assay variances were 0.05, 0.05, and 0.06 log10 copies/ml for the Versant, Amplicor, and NucliSens QT HIV-1 load assays, respectively (P, not significant). However, mean HIV-1 viral load was consistently reduced in dried samples by 0.32 to 0.51 log10 copies/ml, depending on assay type (P < 0.05). Infectious HIV-1 was not recovered from dried ST plasma. There was no significant difference in HIV-1 viral load results obtained using ST after 8 weeks of storage at ambient temperature. Compared to frozen plasma, HIV-1 genotypic results were >99% concordant at the nucleotide and amino acid levels, as well as for resistance-associated mutations. We further demonstrated successful detection of multiple analytes, including HIV-1 viral load, HIV-1 antiretroviral resistance genotype, and HCV genotype, from a single ST unit. Dried plasma collected with ST yielded comparable results to frozen samples for multiple-analyte clinical testing. As such, ST could be a useful alternative for virologic tests and clinical trials worldwide by significantly diminishing transportation cost and the sample volume restrictions associated with dried-blood-spot technology.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: AIDS Research Center, VA Palo Alto Health Care System, 3801 Miranda Ave. (132), Palo Alto, CA 94304. Phone: (650) 852-3408. Fax: (650) 858-3978. E-mail: Holodniy{at}stanford.edu

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 25 March 2009.

Journal of Clinical Microbiology, May 2009, p. 1491-1496, Vol. 47, No. 5
0095-1137/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JCM.02354-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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