Evaluation of the Cobas 4800 HPV Test for Detecting High-Risk Human Papilloma-Virus in Cervical Cytology Specimens

Application of the Cobas 4800 System for the Detection of High-Risk Human Papillomavirus in 5650 Asymptomatic Women

High-risk papillomavirus (HR-HPV) testing combined with cytology improves the detection of cervical lesions and increases length of screening intervals. For a population-based HR-HPV survey, testing automation is in great need. The Cobas 4800 HPV Test System is a fully automated assay that can simultaneously detect HPV16, HPV18, and other 12 pooled HR-HPV genotypes. This system has been employed for HR-HPV screening in a number of countries; however, such application in a large population in China has not been documented. In this study, we employed the Cobas 4800 HPV Test System to detect HR-HPV in cervical cytology specimens collected from a total of 5650 asymptomatic women from a region of South China. We reported the following: (1) the prevalence of the 14 genotypes of HR-HPV was 12.96%; (2) for those with HR-HPV infection, 2.25% were positive for HPV16, 0.50% for HPV18, 9.15% for pooled 12 HPV types, and 1.06% for multiple HPV infection; and (3) there was no significant difference in the HR-HPV prevalence among different age groups. HPV16 and HPV18 have been shown to be the predominant HPV types found in cervical cancer patients in some regions in China, indicating that a fully automated assay like the Cobas 4800 HPV Test System is especially valuable for population-based HR-HPV screening in these regions as this assay can concurrently detect HPV16 and HPV18.

Plasma microRNAs characterising patients with immune thrombo cytopenic purpura

Altered microRNA (miRNA) expression has been reported in patients with immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP). However, the detailed expression profiling of cell-free circulating miRNAs in ITP patients has not been fully investigated. In this study, we aimed to examine plasma miRNAs in ITP patients and evaluate their diagnostic values. Plasma samples from 74 ITP patients and 58 healthy controls were obtained and allocated into discovery, validation, and therapy-response sets. Initial screen with a miRNA microarray assay identified 23 miRNAs with different levels between ITP patients and healthy controls (>1.5-fold changes; p<0.01). Subsequent quantitative real-time PCR confirmed eight up-regulated miRNAs (miR-320c, miR-642b-3p, miR-1275, miR-3141, miR-4270, miR-4499, miR-4739 and miR-6126) and three down-regulated miRNAs (miR-144–3p, miR-1281 and miR-3162–3p) in ITP patients. The levels of these circulating miRNAs varied, depending on ITP subtypes, i.e. newly-diagnosed, persistent and chronic ITP, and between treatment responders and non-responders. In receiver operator characteristic analysis, 10 miRNAs had positive diagnostic values (p<0.05) when tested individually. The diagnostic value improved when the miRNAs were analysed as a panel or together with the analysis of anti-platelet autoantibodies. Plasma miR-3162–3p levels were also found to positively correlate with platelet counts in ITP patients (r=0.338, p=0.01). Our results indicate that plasma miRNA profiles are altered in ITP patients and that the differentially expressed miRNAs may be used as biomarkers to improve the diagnosis of ITP.

Prevalence of high-risk human papillomavirus by cobas 4800 HPV test in urban Peru

Background

Molecular tests allow the detection of high-risk human papillomavirus in cervical samples, playing an important role in the prevention of cervical cancer.

Objectives

We performed a study to determine the prevalence of HPV 16, HPV 18 and other high-risk human papillomavirus (pool 12 genotypes) in Peruvian females from diverse urban areas using the cobas 4800 HPV test.

Methods

Routine cervical samples collected in our laboratory were analyzed by cobas 4800 HPV test.

Results

A total of 2247 samples from female patients aged 17–79 years were tested. high-risk human papillomavirus was positive in 775 (34.49%) samples. Of these, 641 (82.71%) were single infections and 134 (17.29%) were multiple infections. The positivity rates for HPV 16, HPV 18, and other high-risk human papillomavirus were 10.77%, 2.0%, and 28.08%, respectively. In multiple high-risk human papillomavirus infections, the concomitance of HPV 16 and other high-risk human papillomavirus was more prevalent (13.42%).

Conclusion

Our study showed high prevalence of high-risk human papillomavirus in urban Peru, mainly among young women. In both single and multiple infections other high-risk human papillomavirus were more prevalent than HPV 16 and HPV 18, which might influence vaccine impact in our country. Furthermore, the cobas 4800 HPV test may be considered a useful tool for HPV molecular diagnosis.