Estimation of the Seroconversion Duration of HIV-1 Antibodies in Individuals With Recent Infection in China

Abstract

The identification of recent HIV-1 infection is clinically important for the effective treatment and prevention of transmission. However, the window period for seroconversion with respect to various HIV-1 antibodies is not well characterized. In addition, the routine HIV testing algorithms are not particularly appropriate for the identification of recent HIV-1 infection. In this study, we enrolled individuals who showed seroconversion from negative Western blot (WB) or indeterminate WB results and analyzed the window periods for appearance of HIV-1 antibodies. A total of 10,934 individuals with suspected HIV infection were tested by Wuhan CDC between 2012 and 2017; of these, 40 individuals with initial negative WB and 102 individuals with initial indeterminate WB who showed positive WB results within 100 days were included in the analysis. The mean time for seroconversion was 43.90 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 37.30–50.50) days and 42.15 (95% CI: 37.99–46.30) days, respectively. The time duration for p31 seroconversion among people with negative WB and indeterminate WB was 58.11 (95% CI, 44.30–71.92) days and 51.91 (95% CI, 44.55–59.28) days, respectively, both of which were significantly longer ( p = 0.0169) than those in people without p31 seroconversion. A similar difference was observed with respect to p66 seroconversion, with a window time of 53.53 (95% CI, 43.54–63.52) days and 47.87 (95% CI, 43.16–52.57) days among people with negative WB and indeterminate WB, respectively. These data suggest that HIV-1 antibody p66, like p31, may serve as a potential serological marker for distinguishing Fiebig stage V and stage VI at day 70 post-infection.

The first case of monkeypox virus and acute HIV infection: Should we consider monkeypox a new possible sexually transmitted infection?

“…The incubation period for MPXV can range from 5 up to 21 days, 1,3 whereas HIV seroconversion times range between 15-60 days. 8 It is likely that the MPXV lesions facilitated HIV transmission, by disrupting the anal mucosal integrity. Interestingly, clinical manifestation of MPXV (fever, rash, lymphadenopathy, etc.,) are the same as those observed in acute HIV infection, making differential diagnosis even more challenging.…”

Anti-HIV-1 antibodies based confirmatory results in Wuhan, China, 2012-2018

“…They are able to detect HIV specific antibodies in most subjects, but acute HIV infection and late-stage HIV infection maybe negative or indeterminate for HIV antibody tests [ 3 , 21 – 23 ]. Previous studies have proven that the sequential emergence of HIV-1 antibodies associates with the progress of HIV-1 infection [ 11 , 12 , 24 – 26 ], therefore the laboratory diagnosis of HIV infection is helpful for understanding the local epidemic and may partly reflect the effectiveness of HIV/AIDS intervention. Our data indicated that, although the number of suspected samples gradually grown in Wuhan, the positive rate of HIV-1 antibodies has declined significantly during 2012–2018.…”

“…In the same time, the recent HIV-1 infection and suspected acute HIV infection seem to be increased, which may be caused by the extensive usage of the sensitive 4 th generation ELISA and/or chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) kits in China, and may also be associated with the efforts of China in intervening HIV infection among high risk population in recent years [ 27 , 28 ]. Previous studies have reported that the number, intensity and order of emergence of WB bands were affected by the stage of HIV infection [ 10 , 11 ], and pol antibodies may be predictors of seroconversion [ 4 ], especially p31 [ 10 , 20 , 29 – 31 ] and p66 [ 12 ]. In this study, we identified that the absence rates of p31, p66, and p51 were 17.03%, 9.40%, and 15.15% respectively and all of them increased significantly from 2012 to 2018.…”

“…Studies had proved that the number, intensity, and the order of appearance of HIV antibodies in blood were associated with the stage of HIV-1 infection [10,11]. Recently, we had estimated the seroconversion time of HIV-1 antibodies from a clinical observation and found that both p31 and p66 antibodies were potential serologic biomarkers of recent HIV-1 infection [12]. However, the rate of recent HIV-1 infection with absence of p31 or p66 in Wuhan was yet to be determined.…”

Rapid Diagnosis of HIV-1 virus by Near Infrared Spectroscopy: based on Partial least squares regression

“…HIV-1 nucleic acid test (NAT), in addition, is recommended for HIV-1 screening and diagnosis, especially for acute HIV-1 Infected and advanced AIDS patients. However, due to the cost and technical barriers, their use as general screening and diagnostic tools is limited [1]. The level of viral replication determined by the HIV-1 p24 capsid protein is quantified using the ELISA antigen capture assay, which is time consuming and produces false positive and/or negative results.…”