Virtual Phenotype HIV Test Superior to Genotyping

The results showed that the test reliably and independently predicted the way HIV patients would respond to therapy in a clinical trial. In the same analysis, conventional genotyping using rule-based interpretation failed to predict clinical outcome, and a direct comparison showed the superiority of the VirtualPhenotype to be statistically significant. Virtual Phenotype is the product of Virco (Mechelen, Belgium).

The study used data from a prospective randomized clinical trial that previously validated theAntivirogram of Virco as a reliable predictor of treatment response. Patient samples were re-analyzed using the VirtualPhenotype, which combines genetic information from the patient's virus with a large database of resistance information from previous virus samples to produce a precise and reliable resistance score for each drug. The study demonstrated that the VirtualPhenotype and the Antivirogram phenotype are both statistically reliable predictors of response to therapy in a stringent multivariate statistical test.

Virco is an international biotechnology company focused on the diagnosis and management of HIV and other infectious diseases and cancer. In January 2001, the company announced it would merge with Tibotec (also in Mechelen), an international company developing anti-HIV drugs that address the problems of drug resistance, compliance, and side effects.

"This study is notable because it provides validation of the VirtualPhenotype with respect to virologic outcome in the context of a clinical trial,” said Scott Hammer, chief of infectious diseases at Columbia University (NY, NY, USA). "This will reassure clinicians about using this approach to help manage their patients.”



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