Using common features of viruses and EVs for a novel EV-based lateral flow test for HIV

Abstract

The similarities between extracellular vesicles (EVs) and viruses make them challenging to distinguish and separate into unique populations. A novel lateral flow test has been developed by utilizing these shared properties to improve at-home testing for HIV. By targeting EVs released from HIV infected cells (HIV-EVs) and HIV virus particles for immunocapture, which share common transmembrane proteins like tetraspanins, HIV proteins can be concentrated from blood samples in a lateral flow device. Others have described immunocapture of EVs by lateral flow; here we describe capture and lysis for downstream detection of specific HIV cargo for a sensitive antigen-only HIV test. We found that HIV antigens p24 and Nef are detected early in infection and may significantly improve the sensitivity of an at-home test format by utilizing EVs as a novel reservoir of HIV antigens.