Population Genetics Technologies Ltd. has struck a deal with Case Western Reserve University and the University Hospitals health care system to help develop a test that would provide a better gauge of drug resistance in patients with the HIV virus. Patients with HIV, which can cause AIDS, have been successfully treated with a cocktail of antiretroviral drugs since the mid-1990s. However, the World Health Organization reported last year that as much as 10 percent of the population with HIV is resistant to the front-line drugs. Resistance is the leading reason why antiretroviral treatments fail. Those patients require alternative treatments, and they are potentially placed at risk of developing resistance to all antiretroviral medications if their condition is not diagnosed in a timely manner. “Detection of the development of resistance at the earliest possible time is critical for optimal clinical management of HIV infection,” said Miguel Quiñones-Mateu, M.D., in a press release. He is the scientific director of the University Hospitals translational laboratory and a Case Western pathology professor and will be leading the collaboration with Population Genetics. The United Kingdom-based Population Genetics has been using next generation sequencing (NGS) for its test development. The current standard assays detect drug resistance […]
Population Genetics Technologies Ltd. has struck a deal with Case Western Reserve University and the University Hospitals health care system to help develop a test that would provide a better gauge of drug resistance in patients with the HIV virus.
Patients with HIV, which can cause AIDS, have been successfully treated with a cocktail of antiretroviral drugs since the mid-1990s. However, the World Health Organization reported last year that as much as 10 percent of the population with HIV is resistant to the front-line drugs. Resistance is the leading reason why antiretroviral treatments fail. Those patients require alternative treatments, and they are potentially placed at risk of developing resistance to all antiretroviral medications if their condition is not diagnosed in a timely manner.
“Detection of the development of resistance at the earliest possible time is critical for optimal clinical management of HIV infection,” said Miguel Quiñones-Mateu, M.D., in a press release. He is the scientific director of the University Hospitals translational laboratory and a Case Western pathology professor and will be leading the collaboration with Population Genetics.
The United Kingdom-based Population Genetics has been using next generation sequencing (NGS) for its test development. The current standard assays detect drug resistance about 20 percent of the time; NGS can provide 95 percent accuracy. Population Genetics wants to combine NGS with a proprietary system that would provide accuracy of up to 99.9 percent, meaning virtually every mutation that could lead to drug resistance would be detected. The two parties intend to develop a companion diagnostic that can be used in the long-term treatment and management of HIV in patients.
“We are delighted to have access to the expertise of Dr. Miguel Quiñones-Mateu, who brings enormous technical expertise and success in the development and validation of infectious disease diagnostics to our organization,” said Alan Schafer, Population Genetics’ chief executive officer, in the release announcing the arrangement. “His skills and knowledge will add greatly to the capabilities of the company, and enable us to accelerate our product development program.”
Takeaway: Laboratories are on the frontline of developing assays to better assist in treating HIV patients through antiretroviral drugs.
