F. Davison et al., QUANTIFICATION OF HIV DNA IN THE BRAIN BY PCR - DIFFERENCES BETWEEN FRESH-FROZEN AND FORMALIN-FIXED TISSUE, Journal of Clinical Pathology, 49(5), 1996, pp. 425-427
HIV-1 DNA extracted from frozen and formalin fixed brain tissue can be
detected using PCR. This work has been extended by amplifying, using
semiquantitative PCR, HIV DNA extracted from frontal lobe tissue of 16
patients with AIDS (eight positive and eight negative for p24 antigen
). DNA was amplified using HIV-1 pol gene digoxigenin labelled primers
and detected by chemiluminescence and densitometry. Cloned standards
were amplified in parallel for quantification. HIV DNA levels detected
in frozen tissue showed a correlation with p24 positivity and the sev
erity of the histological diagnosis. This correlation was less clear i
n the formalin fixed material.