# Simple Method for Screening of HIV Drug Resistance in Resource-Limited Settings

> **NIH NIH R41** · DISCIDIUM BIOSCIENCES, LLC · 2022 · $299,999

## Abstract

Abstract
Drug resistance to antiretroviral therapy for HIV infection is a serious clinical problem without cost-effective
solutions in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) where standard genotypic resistance assays are
unaffordable. Discidium's goal is to develop a single tube assay that uses lyophilized reactants, standard PCR
and in-tube readout, that can be used as a screening resistance test and in laboratories with minimal
infrastructure. We have exploited a Taq polymerase that absolutely requires a terminal 3´ base match that, with
appropriate primers matched to resistance-associated polymorphisms, forms the basis for a low-cost allele-
specific PCR resistance assay. This assay reveals the presence of first line resistance mutations to the most
common NRTI that underscore resistance in the vast majority of individuals failing therapy in LMICs. We have
also developed a fluorescence approach that allows direct visualization of PCR products under a blue light
source. As such, the assay is single-step in that amplification and readout occur in the same tube. Our
preliminary data supports the use of this assay to target the most common mutations that confer resistance to
ARTs (K103N for NNRTIs and M184V for NRTIs), and we propose to optimize the use of this assay in
unprocessed blood, and rigorously validate the assay performance using HIV-1 harboring the K103N and
M184V mutations. This assay has the potential to be developed into a complete kit that health care workers
can use to perform HIV-1 resistance testing in LMICs to guide optimal management of HIV-1-infected
individuals.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10384759
- **Project number:** 1R41AI162258-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** DISCIDIUM BIOSCIENCES, LLC
- **Principal Investigator:** Mario Stevenson
- **Activity code:** R41 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $299,999
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-08-17 → 2025-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10384759

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10384759, Simple Method for Screening of HIV Drug Resistance in Resource-Limited Settings (1R41AI162258-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10384759. Licensed CC0.

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