Comparison of Hybribio GenoArray and Roche human papillomavirus (HPV) linear array for HPV genotyping in anal swab samples.

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is causally associated with anal cancer, as HPV DNA is detected in up to 90% of anal intraepithelial neoplasias and anal cancers. With the gradual increase of anal cancer rates, there is a growing need to establish reliable and clinically relevant methods to detect anal cancer precursors. In resource-limited settings, HPV DNA detection is a potentially relevant tool for anal cancer screening. Here, we evaluated the performance of the Hybribio GenoArray (GA) for genotyping HPV in anal samples, against the reference standard Roche Linear Array (LA). Anal swab samples were obtained from sexually active men who have sex with men. Following DNA extraction, each sample was genotyped using GA and LA. The overall interassay agreement, type-specific, and single and multiple genotype agreements were evaluated by kappa statistics and McNemar's χ(2) tests. Using GA and LA, 68% and 76% of samples were HPV DNA positive, respectively. There was substantial interassay agreements for the detection of all HPV genotypes (κ = 0.70, 86% agreement). Although LA was able to detect more genotypes per sample, the interassay agreement was acceptable (κ = 0.53, 63% agreement). GA had poorer specific detection of HPV genotypes 35, 42, and 51 (κ < 0.60). In conclusion, GA and LA showed good interassay agreement for the detection of most HPV genotypes in anal samples. However, the detection of HPV DNA in up to 76% of anal samples warrants further evaluation of its clinical significance.

Enrichment of gut-derived Fusobacterium is associated with suboptimal immune recovery in HIV-infected individuals.

We explored the gut microbiota profile among HIV-infected individuals with diverse immune recovery profiles following long-term suppressive ART and investigated the relationship between the altered bacteria with markers of immune dysfunction. The microbiota profile of rectal swabs from 26 HIV-infected individuals and 20 HIV-uninfected controls were examined. Patients were classified as suboptimal responders, sIR (n = 10, CD4 T-cell <350 cells/ul) and optimal responders, oIR (n = 16, CD4 T-cell >500 cells/ul) after a minimum of 2 years on suppressive ART. Canonical correlation analysis(CCA) and multiple regression modelling were used to explore the association between fecal bacterial taxa abundance and immunological profiles in optimal and suboptimal responders. We found Fusobacterium was significantly enriched among the HIV-infected and the sIR group. CCA results showed that Fusobacterium abundance was negatively correlated with CD4 T-cell counts, but positively correlated with CD4 T-cell activation and CD4 Tregs. Multiple linear regression analysis adjusted for age, baseline CD4 T-cell count, antibiotic exposure and MSM status indicated that higher Fusobacterium relative abundance was independently associated with poorer CD4 T-cell recovery following ART. Enrichment of Fusobacterium was associated with reduced immune recovery and persistent immune dysfunction following ART. Modulating the abundance of this bacterial taxa in the gut may be a viable intervention to improve immune reconstitution in our setting.