Dried cervical spots for human papillomaviruses identification.

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Public Health
• Molecular Diagnostics

Background:

• Financial and operational constraints hinder high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) screening in low-resource countries, impacting cervical cancer prevention.
• Dried cervical samples (DCS) present a promising alternative to liquid cervical samples (LCS) due to simplified storage, conservation, and shipping.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the reliability and concordance of HPV genotyping performed on DCS compared to matched LCS.
• To assess the feasibility of using DCS for epidemiological studies and cervical cancer screening in resource-limited settings.

Main Methods:

• Cervical samples were collected from 50 HIV-1 positive women in Côte d'Ivoire.
• DNA was extracted from both DCS and matched LCS.
• HPV genotyping was performed on both sample types, and concordance was evaluated using Kappa statistics.

Main Results:

• HPV prevalence was 88% in LCS and 78% in DCS.
• Kappa statistics for any genotype and HR-HPV were 0.51 and 0.73, respectively.
• Concordance for any genotype and HR genotype identification was 86% and 88%, respectively, with excellent agreement for several specific HPV types.

Conclusions:

• DCS provide concordant/compatible results with LCS for HPV genotyping in most cases, despite potential interfering factors.
• DCS are a viable and efficient tool for HPV epidemiological field studies in resource-limited settings.
• Implementing DCS can enhance cervical cancer screening coverage and improve care management for women, particularly those infected with HPV.