Mutagenically-separated PCR as a Tool for Screening AZT Resistant HIV-1 in Thailand (การประยุกต์ใช้เทคนิคMutagenically Separated PCR (MS-PCR)ในการตรวจกรองเชื้อเอชไอวีที่ดื้อยาต้านไวรัส AZT)

Mutagenically-separated PCR (MS-PCR) is a PCR-based point mutation assay which overcomes the specificity, limitation and has been successfully applied to detecting AZT-resistant HIV- 1. In all, 112 individuals who had received AZT and ddI or ddC as dual therapy were examined by DNA sequencing and MS-PCR; 292 drug-naive individuals were tested by the M41L and K70R MS-PCR assay. The concordant rates of detecting M41L and K70R mutation by these two methods were 97.9 (94/96) and 92.7 (89/96), respectively. The M41L and K70R MS-PCR could detect 86.4 percent of AZT-resistant viruses compared by the sequencing assay. Out of 292 drug-naive individuals, two individuals reportedly carried viruses with either M41L or K70R mutation. The prevalence of AZT-resistance virus was very low among drug-naive HIV-1 infected individuals in the North of Thailand. The M41L and K70R MS-PCR is a potential useful tool for screening AZTresistant HIV-1 in Thailand.