Prevalence and correlates of Human Papillomavirus infection in females from Southern Province, Zambia: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is strongly associated with cervical cancer with almost all cases being associated with the infection. Cervical cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among women in Zambia and the fourth leading cause of cancer death in women worldwide. However, there is limited data on the burden and associated factors of HPV in sub-Saharan Africa. This study therefore aimed to determine the prevalence and correlates of HPV infection in the Southern province of Zambia. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at Livingstone University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) among 4,612 women from different districts of the southern province being screened for HPV infection between September 2021 and August 2022. Demographic and clinical data were collected from an existing laboratory programmatic database. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate the factors associated with HPV infection. RESULTS: The study participants had a median age of 39 years [interquartile range (IQR) 30, 47]. The prevalence of HPV infection was 35.56% (95%CI). At multivariable analysis, the factors associated with a positive HPV result were younger age (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 0.98; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.98-0.99; p. value 0.001), having provider collected sample (AOR 2.15; 95%CI 1.66-2.79; p. value <0.001) and living with HIV (AOR 1.77; 95%CI 1.22-2.55; p. value <0.002). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of HPV in women in the southern province of Zambia is high, and likely influenced by age and HIV status. Additionally, the outcome of the HPV test is affected by the sample collection method. Therefore, there is a necessity to enhance HPV and cervical cancer screening, especially among people with HIV.

HIV-Host Cell Interactions.

The development of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) was a great milestone in the management of HIV infection. ARVs suppress viral activity in the host cell, thus minimizing injury to the cells and prolonging life. However, an effective treatment has remained elusive for four decades due to the successful immune evasion mechanisms of the virus. A thorough understanding of the molecular interaction of HIV with the host cell is essential in the development of both preventive and curative therapies for HIV infection. This review highlights several inherent mechanisms of HIV that promote its survival and propagation, such as the targeting of CD4+ lymphocytes, the downregulation of MHC class I and II, antigenic variation and an envelope complex that minimizes antibody access, and how they collaboratively render the immune system unable to mount an effective response.

Verification of dried blood spot as a sample type for HIV viral load and early infant diagnosis on Hologic Panther in Zambia.

OBJECTIVE: Zambia has embarked on improving the diagnostic capacity by setting up high throughput and accurate machines in the testing process and introduction of dried blood spot (DBS) as a sample type. This was a cross sectional study to verify dried blood spot as a sample type for HIV viral load and early infant diagnosis (EID) on Hologic Panther platform and Evaluate the analytical performance (precision, linearity and measurement of uncertainty) of the Hologic Panther. RESULTS: The specificity and sensitivity of EID performance of Aptima Quant Dx assay on Hologic panther machine against the gold standard machine COBAS Taqman (CAP/CTM) was 100% with an overall agreement of 100%. The quantitative HIV Viral Load (VL) accuracy had a positive correlation of (0.96) obtained against the gold standard (plasma samples) run on COBAS4800 platform. Analytical performance of the Hologic panther machine was evaluated; Precision low positive repeatability 3.50154 and within lab 2.268915 at mean 2.88 concentration and precision high positive repeatability 1.116955 and within lab 2.010677 at mean 5.09 concentration were obtained confirming manufacturers claims. Uncertainty of measurement for this study was found to be ± 71 copies/ml. Linearity studies were determined and all points were within acceptable limits. We therefore recommend DBS as a sample type alternative to plasma for the estimation of HIV-1 viral load and EID diagnosis on the Hologic panther machine.