A rapid spin through oil results in higher cell-associated concentrations of antiretrovirals compared with conventional cell washing
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Updated: Apr 7, 2026
Rapid Screening of HIV Reverse Transcriptase and Integrase Inhibitors
Published on: April 9, 2014
Theodore J Cory1, Lee C Winchester1, Brian L Robbins1
1Antiviral Pharmacology Laboratory, College of Pharmacy, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198, USA.
Background:
Determination of cell-associated antiretroviral drug concentrations is necessary for research into reservoirs of HIV. Variation exists in cell-associated drug concentrations among research groups. One cause for this may be washing cells during processing. We explored spinning cells through oil to minimize this variability.
Methods & Results:
Raltegravir, atazanavir, darunavir, efavirenz, lopinavir and ritonavir concentrations were assessed in CEM.ss T cells washed with HBSS and oil-spun cells. Oil-spun cells had significantly higher concentrations for all drugs compared with samples washed with HBSS.
Conclusion:
The decline in cell-associated drug concentrations with saline washes compared with a single spin through oil shows the utility of a spin through oil. Oil centrifugation results in high cell-associated drug concentrations, and can be done in a fast, efficient manner.
