In patients receiving antiviral drugs, is free viral RNA/DNA from dead virions released in serum? If so will this affect the accuracy (in terms of therapeutic outcome) of qPCR based diagnostic tests?
Hi, it will not affect the outcomes, besides you will not tell a patients that is in pains to stop receiving because you want to carry out your research, while the patients wants to get better.
The short answer is no. Effective antiviral therapy will lower serum levels of viral RNA/DNA -- this is how we know in clinical practice that the antiviral therapy is effectively suppressing the virus. A longer answer is that the half-life of circulating viruses is generally low, and antiviral therapies (at least those used in humans) don't result in the release of naked viral RNA/DNA into serum. Even if they did, the nucleic acid would be rapidly eliminated.
Thank you Dr. Tai for your answer.
Assuming the viral DNA/RNA is released in blood, wouldn't it theoretically show half-lives that are similar to other forms of host cell free DNA?
I mean to ask, that given the possible role of cf-DNA in diagnosis of autoimmune disorders or cancers, could naked viral DNA/RNA be of value in monitoring response to antiviral therapy? That is of-course provided that a quantification method that is able to differentiate between DNA/RNA coming form intact virions vs. naked DNA/RNA did exist.
Thank you
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