New Test Spots Drug Resistance in HIV Patients

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Researchers at Duke University tried out the new test on AIDS patients and found that it detected drug resistance in strains that make up as little as .1 to .01 percent of virus in a person. According to the researchers, that's 1,000 times more sensitive than any existing test.

The researchers report their findings about the test in the February issue of Nature Methods, which was published online on Sunday.

According to a statement from Duke, the test's developers want to patent the technology and either create a company to develop it or license the test to another company.

There are some caveats. The test may be expensive, although Gao doesn't expect it to cost more than $1,000. Currently, according to Johnston, many patients don't get the best tests that are available, so there's a question about how many would get the new test.

Meanwhile, there's debate about how valuable it is to know that, for instance, 10 percent of a person's HIV strains are resistant to particular types of drugs.

"There's one school of people who says that if 10 percent of your virus population is resistant, that might not be that clinically important in the end," Johnston said. "Another school says that it might almost make the difference between life and death."

More information

For more information about drug resistance, try the World Health Organization.