The human retroviruses that have been extensively characterized. (HTLV-I, HTLV-II, HIV-1, and HIV-2) all have a tropism for the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). Serological assays have been used quite successfully to identify persons with prior exposure to these viruses, but they fail to determine a current infection. Virus isolation assays require prolonged co-cultivation of patients' PBMC with a susceptible cell line and have been shown to lack sensitivity. A newly described DNA amplification technique, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR), appears to have a great potential for the detection of viral DNA. The PCR, however, requires highly trained personnel, expensive equipment, and about 3 days to perform an assay. SRA Technologies, Inc , proposes to develop a simple, rapid, hybridization assay to detect current infections by these retroviruses. The method employs a plastic capillary as a solid phase to perform the hybridization assay. The capillary provides a very large reactive surface relative to sample size and also forces the close proximity of reactants. The environment produces increased sensitivity with shorter incubation times and temperature requirements. A nonisotopic, enzyme immunoassay amplification detection system is used to indicate hybridization with a known DNA probeAwardee's statement ofthe potential commercial applications of the research:SRA Technologies, Inc , proposes to develop a simple, rapid, hybridization assay to detect current infections by HTLV-I and HTLV-II retrovirusesNational Cancer Institute (NCI)
