The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the cobas TaqScreen MPX Test, the first nucleic acid test that screens for the presence of two divergent types of HIV in donated blood plasma and tissue.
“With the MPX test, blood donor testing laboratories will be able to use nucleic acid technology to screen for additional HIV strains, further assuring that donated blood and tissue are free from infection and providing better protection for patients,” said Jesse L. Goodman, M.D., M.P.H., director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.
Nucleic acid is the common name for the large chemical compounds that make up the genetic material in living cells. The new FDA-approved test detects nucleic acid from HIV-2 and from HIV-1 Group O. HIV-2 infections and HIV-1 Group O infections are predominantly found on the African continent. Some cases of infection with these two types of viruses have also been detected in the United States.
In addition to HIV-2 and HIV-1 Group O, the MPX test simultaneously detects nucleic acid from the most common form of HIV, HIV-1 Group M, as well as the Hepatitis C Virus and the Hepatitis B Virus.
The MPX test is designed for use with plasma specimens from human donors of whole blood and blood components, but not for testing donated source plasma. Donated source plasma is considered plasma intended for further manufacturing.
The test is also intended for screening tissue specimens obtained while the donor’s heart is still beating; it is not intended for use on specimens from donors whose heart no longer functions.
The cobas TaqScreen MPX Test runs on the fully-automated cobas s 201 System. It is manufactured by Roche Molecular Systems Inc., Pleasanton, Calif.
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Wednesday, December 31, 2008
FDA Approves First Nucleic Acid Test to Screen for Additional Types of HIV in Donated Blood and Tissue
Thursday, September 4, 2008
FDA Approves DNA Test to Measure Hepatitis B Virus Levels
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the first nucleic acid test for hepatitis B virus (HBV) that measures the amount of viral DNA (viral load) in a patient’s blood. Assessing a patient’s viral load provides health care professionals with a highly sensitive method for gauging the progress of antiviral therapy in patients with chronic HBV infections.
The COBAS TaqMan HBV Test extracts and then amplifies sections of viral DNA from human plasma or serum. The viral DNA sections are measured to establish a baseline level before beginning treatment, and then used again during treatment to assess an individual’s response to therapy. (The baseline level of hepatitis B virus should decrease with successful treatment.) The test is used with other clinical findings, such as results from biochemical and serological testing.
“Measuring a patient’s HBV viral load is an important aspect of managing chronic hepatitis B infections,” said Daniel G. Schultz, M.D., director of FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health. “The COBAS TaqMan test gives health care providers a new and sensitive tool for this process.”
HBV is the most serious type of viral hepatitis, infecting about two billion people worldwide each year, according to the World Health Organization. A vaccine for HBV has been available in the United States since 1982. However, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1.25 million people in the United States have chronic hepatitis B. Another 60,000 become infected each year and some 5,000 die from hepatitis B-related complications.
HBV is spread through sexual exposure, use of infected needles, and transmitted from infected mother to child during birth. Symptoms occur in about 70 percent of patients, and include abdominal pain, jaundice, fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, and vomiting.
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