Pharmacokinetics of Efavirenz 600mg in Combination with Rifampicin in Chinese HIV/TB Co-Infection Patients.

Background: Rifampicin is a known inducer of the cytochrome P450 (CYP2B6) enzyme, which can lead to a decrease in the concentration of efavirenz. Therefore, we conducted a study to evaluate the effect of daily rifampicin intake on efavirenz 600mg pharmacokinetics and HIV-1 virological suppression. Methods: Patients receiving antiretroviral therapy containing efavirenz (600mg daily), and we collected efavirenz concentration at four visit points: ART day 14 (PK1), ART day 42 (PK2), ART day 140 (PK3), and ART day 336 (PK4), and performed pharmacokinetics analysis. Results: From February 2017 to November 2020, 29 HIV/TB co-infection patients were included. Ninety percent of patients had a concentration of ≥1000ng/mL of efavirenz during the study. All patients had efavirenz Cmax ≥1000ng/mL, 86% patients showed good virology response. Conclusion: Our study shows that the use of rifampicin in HIV/TB co-infection patients does not affect efavirenz drug concentrations, that virological suppression is good and that no efavirenz dose adjustment is required.

Performance of Xpert MTB/RIF for Diagnosis of Tuberculosis in HIV-Infected People in China: A Retrospective, Single-Center Study.

BACKGROUND There are few studies of GeneXpert MTB/RIF (hereafter referred to as Xpert) detection technology in HIV-infected people in China. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the value of Xpert in HIV/TB co-infected patients and to provide reference and guidance for the diagnosis of TB in HIV-infected populations. MATERIAL AND METHODS This study reviewed medical records of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients hospitalized at the Infection Center of Beijing Ditan Hospital affiliated to Capital Medical University from January 2018 to May 2020, and patients diagnosed with pulmonary and extrapulmonary tuberculosis were screened as study subjects. Sensitivity and specificity of Xpert were analyzed using ROC curves. RESULTS Of the 413 HIV patients, 177 patients met the entry criteria, of which the diagnosis was active pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB): 145 and extrapulmonary tuberculosis (EPTB): 32. The sensitivity of Xpert for PTB and EPTB was 82.0% and 100%, higher than that of acid-fast bacilli (AFB) (61.0% and 58.3%), and slightly lower than that of T-SPOT.TB (91.0% and 100%); the specificity was 83.7% and 93.5%, higher than that of AFB (72.6%, 87.1%) and T-SPOT.TB (16.6%, 21.2%). The sensitivity of Xpert was 100% in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and 80.0% in sputum; in patients with CD4⁺ <200 cells/mm³, the sensitivity of Xpert was 90.0% and specificity was 84.8%, higher than that of AFB (60.0%, 75.5%) and T-SPOT.TB (90.0%, 21.5%). CONCLUSIONS Xpert has a high accuracy in HIV/TB co-infected patients, and Xpert still shows a high sensitivity and specificity even in HIV patients with CD4⁺ <200 cells/mm³. Xpert is recommended for the diagnosis of tuberculosis in HIV-infected patients.

Isolation of a Monoclonal Antibody and its Derived Immunosensor for Rapid and Sensitive Detection of 17ß-Estradiol.

Estrogens are effective for stimulating several functions in living organisms and for regulating cancer development by promoting cell proliferation. Estradiol can disrupt the reproductive and endocrine systems, leading to the development of various diseases. In this study, the monoclonal antibody ESC9 was developed by immunizing mice with a 17ß-estradiol (E2) conjugate, preparing an antibody phage display library, and screening monoclonal antibodies from the prepared library. An antibody with the same sequence as that of ESC9 has not been reported previously. The equilibrium dissociation constant between ESC9 and E2 was found to be 43.3 nM. Additionally, we generated an ESC9-derived immunosensor named as the ESC9 Quenchbody (Q-body), which can rapidly and sensitively detect E2. The assay can be completed within 2 min with a limit of detection of 3.9 pg/ml and half-maximal effective concentration of 154.0 ng/ml. Serum E2 levels were measured using the ESC9 Q-body without pretreatment with serum and with a high recovery rate of 83.3-126.7%. The Q-body immunosensor shows potential for clinical applications based on its excellent detection speed and sensitivity.