TaqMan RT-PCR and VERSANT super(()R) HIV-1 RNA 3.0 (bDNA) assay

Background: Transmission of HIV via breast milk is a primary cause of pediatric HIV infection in developing countries. Reliable methods to detect breast milk viral load are important. Objective: To correlate the ability of the VERSANT HIV 3.0 (bDNA) assay to real-time (RT) TaqMan PCR in quantifying breast milk HIV-1 RNA. Study design: Forty-six breast milk samples that had been spiked with cell-free HIV-1 and eight samples spiked with cell-associated HIV-1 were assayed for HIV-1 RNA by both VERSANT HIV 3.0 and TaqMan RNA assays. Results: Only assays on the cell-free samples were statistically compared. Both a Deming regression slope and a Bland-Altman slope indicated a linear relationship between the two assays. TaqMan quantitations were on average 2.6 times higher than those of HIV 3.0. A linear relationship was observed between serial dilutions of spiked cell-free HIV-1 and both the VERSANT HIV 3.0 and the TaqMan RNA assays. Conclusion: The two methods correlated well although the VERSANT HIV 3.0 research protocol quantified HIV-1 RNA slightly lower than TaqMan.