The Evolution of HIV Diagnostic Testing

By Dr. Priyom Bose, Ph.D.Reviewed by Danielle Ellis, B.Sc.

What happens after HIV infection?
Evolution of HIV diagnostic assays
Conclusions
References
Further reading

Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that attacks the body’s immune system, making it vulnerable to all infections. One of the major concerns of the early AIDS epidemic that began in 1981 was the lack of proper diagnostic measures to identify infected individuals.1 Since the development of the first HIV diagnostic assay in 1985, scientists have continued to improve diagnostic accuracy, detection speed, and cost.

What happens after HIV infection?

The immune system produces antibodies after encountering harmful foreign substances or antigens. HIV infects the vital cells associated with immunity, such as macrophages, helper T cells, and dendritic cells, and disrupts their function. The three important HIV antigens are p24, gp 41, and gp 120.²

HIV is a slow-replicating retrovirus that is transmitted through sexual intercourse, sharing an infected needle, or by blood transfer.³ After HIV infection, the viral load cannot be measured immediately due to low plasma load. Typically, the viral RNA can be measured within 10 to 12 days after infection.⁴

Antibodies to p24 and gp 41 are the first serological markers used to detect HIV infection. IgG antibodies appear approximately three weeks after infection. In the majority of HIV-infected individuals, HIV antibodies appear to circulate within 1 to 2 months of the infection. However, in a few cases, it may take up to six months to appear at a detectable level.⁵

Evolution of HIV diagnostic assays

Over the years, scientists have developed many immunoassays and nucleic acid amplification tests (NAATs) to accurately and high-throughput HIV diagnosis. These tests are broadly divided into two categories, namely, screening and confirmatory tests. Typically, HIV tests are performed on blood, oral fluids, or urine samples.⁶

HIV screening is performed by various immunoassays that focus on detecting IgG antibodies against HIV-1 antigens in the serum. Techniques such as Western blot, line immunoassay (LIA), and recombinant immunoblot are used as confirmatory tests.⁷ Some of the important HIV diagnostic assays are discussed below:

Serological testing for HIV

In the mid-1980s, simple serological tests for HIV antibodies were developed based on culture-derived viral antigen preparation.⁷ These tests enabled HIV diagnosis and assessed blood and blood product supplies. Since the early assays, various serological assays have been developed that aided simple/rapid testing, high-throughput screening, confirmatory tests, incidence determination, and epidemiological surveillance. Since its first development, five generations of enzyme immunoassays (EIAs) have emerged based on varied antigen preparations and detection chemistries.⁸

First-generation assays: The first-generation EIAs detect IgG antibodies from antigens derived from whole viral lysates of HIV-positive cultures. Since crude antigen lysate contains impurities, this method exhibited reduced specificity and high false positivity. In contrast, immunofluorescence assays or Western blotting (WB) have shown higher specificity and lower false positivity.

Second-generation assays: Second-generation assays involve the use of recombinant proteins or synthetic peptides derived from the immunodominant regions (IDR) of HIV-1 proteins and gp36 of HIV-2, which increases sensitivity and decreases false positivity.

Third-generation assays: Third-generation assays, including the Genetic Systems HIV-1/HIV-2 Plus O EIA, use a variety of antigens to detect HIV-1 and -2 antibodies in the serum. A major advantage of third-generation sandwich format assays is their ability to detect HIV-1 IgM antibodies early, enabling quicker HIV diagnosis.

Fourth-generation assays: The fourth-generation EIAs, including the Abbott Architect HIV Ag/Ab Combo assay, utilize fully automated chemiluminescent microparticle technology that can instantaneously identify antibodies to HIV-1 and HIV-2 and HIV-1 p24 antigen. This technique has further allowed early HIV diagnosis. Other advantages of fourth-generation high-throughput assays are their capacity to perform more than 150 tests per hour and their ability to test specimens immediately upon arrival and generate results within 30 minutes.  These assays are suitable for facilities, such as blood banks, that handle high volumes of blood samples.

Fifth-generation assays: Fifth-generation assays, such as the Bio-Rad BioPlex 2200 HIV Ag-Ab assay, use magnetic beads coated with p24 monoclonal antibodies and epitopes specific for HIV-1 and HIV-2. This type of assay has a major advantage in that it can confirm HIV infection in a single test.

Despite the advancements in EIA assays, the challenges associated with the generation of false positive results persist. Therefore, EIA-reactive specimen is typically retested with supplemental tests, such as Western Blot.

Rapid diagnostic tests

The first HIV rapid test was available in the early 1990s. It determined an individual's serostatus before surgery, maternal labor/delivery, and organ transplant. Rapid diagnostics is based on immunochromatographic technology that uses blood from finger pricks to assess HIV status. ⁹ This test can provide results in less than 30 minutes and can be used in point-of-care (POC) settings. Since this test presents both false positive and negative results, it is essential to confirm the findings with laboratory-based HIV assays.

The main advantage of this technique is that any non-laboratory staff can perform it in a primary health care center. Even though decentralization of HIV diagnostic services has increased HIV test service in remote areas, it has been challenged by the lack of national guidelines, waste disposal, inventory management, and quality assurance (QA) monitoring.¹⁰

HIV self-testing, based on rapid testing methods, has allowed individuals who would otherwise refrain from testing in fear of discrimination to perform the test privately and start proper intervention. The World Health Organization (WHO) has prequalified several HIV rapid tests for HIV self-testing, including the Insti HIV-1/HIV-2 antibody tests and the Oraquick rapid HIV-1/2 antibody test.¹⁰

Nucleic acid test (NAT)

The NAT identifies HIV nucleic acid, i.e., either RNA or proviral DNA, in the blood sample. This test is based on the principles of polymerase chain reaction (PCR), nucleic acid sequence-based amplification, or ligase chain reaction.¹¹ This test has proved to be vital in situations when an antibody against HIV is absent in serum. NAT is also performed in newborns of HIV-infected mothers. Unlike other assays, this test can detect HIV even after recent or possible exposure to the virus. Furthermore, NAT can quantify viral load.

Revolutions in Infectious Disease Testing

Conclusions

The advancements in HIV diagnostic assays have played a vital role in identifying, staging, and monitoring infected individuals, even when they are under antiretroviral therapy. These assays have played an important role in surveillance and identification of transmission hot spots. Extraordinary progress in HIV testing methodologies has not only reduced false positives but decreased assessment time as well.

References

1. Sharp PM, Hahn BH. Origins of HIV and the AIDS pandemic. Cold Spring Harb Perspect Med. 2011;1(1):a006841. doi: 10.1101/cshperspect.a006841.
2. Foster JE., et al. Viruses as Pathogens: Animal Viruses, With Emphasis on Human Viruses. Viruses. 2018; 157-187. doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-811257-1.00007-3
3. Dasgupta A, Wahed. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis testing. Clinical Chemistry, Immunology and Laboratory Quality Control (Second Edition). 2021; 513-533. doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-815960-6.00015-7
4. Konrad BP, et al. On the duration of the period between exposure to HIV and detectable infection. Epidemics. 2017; 20, 73-83. doi.org/10.1016/j.epidem.2017.03.002
5. Davis LE. Acute viral meningitis and encephalitis. Infections of the Nervous System, 1987; 156-176. doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-407-02293-5.50014-3
6. Pant PN. Oral fluid-based rapid HIV testing: issues, challenges and research directions. Expert Review of Molecular Diagnostics. 2007; 7 (4), 325-328, DOI: 10.1586/14737159.7.4.325
7. Abdullah DM, et al. The contemporary immunoassays for HIV diagnosis: a concise overview. Asian Biomed (Res Rev News). 2023;17(1):3-12. doi: 10.2478/abm-2023-0038.
8. Alexander TS. Human Immunodeficiency Virus Diagnostic Testing: 30 Years of Evolution. Clin Vaccine Immunol. 2016;23(4):249-53. doi: 10.1128/CVI.00053-16.
9. Aidoo S, et al. Suitability of a rapid immunochromatographic test for detection of antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus in Ghana, West Africa. J Clin Microbiol. 2001;39(7):2572-5. doi: 10.1128/JCM.39.7.2572-2575.2001.
10. Parekh BS, et al. Diagnosis of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection. Clin Microbiol Rev. 2018;32(1):e00064-18. doi: 10.1128/CMR.00064-18.
11. Garrett, P. E. Quality control for nucleic acid tests: Common ground and special issues. Journal of Clinical Virology. 2001; 20(1-2), 15-21. doi.org/10.1016/S1386-6532(00)00150-5

Further Reading

• All HIV Content
• The Economic Impacts of AIDS
• Recent Advancements in Treating HIV