HIV RNA has been successfully extracted from human blood using a portable device that does not need electrical power to work. The system, developed by researchers in the US, is another link in the chain to enable the accurate monitoring of Aids treatment in countries with limited resources.
The availability of antiretroviral therapy has expanded rapidly in recent years, but the ability to monitor the progress of treatment has not kept up with the pace. Although cheap, qualitative assays are available for the initial detection of HIV infection, quantitative viral load measurements are needed to check if treatment is working. Effective, inexpensive sample preparation that works at ambient temperature and without the need for cold storage is one of the current stumbling blocks in achieving this goal.
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A portable, pressure driven, room temperature nucleic acid extraction and storage system for point of care molecular diagnostics
Samantha Byrnes, Andy Fan, Jacob Trueb, Francis Jareczek, Mark Mazzochette, Andre Sharon, Alexis F. Sauer-Budge and Catherine M. Klapperich
Anal. Methods, 2013, Advance Article
DOI: 10.1039/C3AY40162F
