DETECTION OF UNINTEGRATED HIV TYPE-1 DNA IN CELL-CULTURE AND CLINICALPERIPHERAL-BLOOD MONONUCLEAR CELL SAMPLES - CORRELATION TO DISEASE STAGE

This article reports on the development of PCR as a sensitive method o f detecting both linear and circular forms of HIV-1 unintegrated viral DNA (UVD). The method was developed in a cell line study designed to follow the sequential synthesis of these forms over time. In all T lym phoid lineage cell lines, the full-length linear UVD (LUVD) was synthe sized prior to both 1 and 2 LTR forms of circular UVD (CUVD), although all forms were detected by 12 hr postinoculation, Analysis of unstimu lated PBMC samples from HIV-positive patients showed a significant dif ference in the presence of detectable CUVD forms and CDC groups II and IV (p < 0.001) and CDC groups III and IV (p < 0.001). No significance was demonstrated between CDC groups II and III (p > 0.5), linking the presence of CUVD forms ro clinical disease and immunodeficiency. We p ropose that circular unintegrated forms of HIV-1 DNA may play a role i n the development of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.