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Updated: Feb 10, 2026

Personalized Peptide Arrays for Detection of HLA Alloantibodies in Organ Transplantation
Published on: September 6, 2017
HLA-B*5701 screening for hypersensitivity to abacavir
Hawazin Faruki1, Myla Lai-Goldman1
1Laboratory Corporation of America, 128 E Maple Ave, Burlington, NC 27215, USA. farukih@labcorp.com.
Abstract:
Evaluation of: Mallal S, Phillips E, Carosi G et al.: HLA-B*5701 screening for hypersensitivity to abacavir. N. Engl. J. Med. 358, 568-579 (2008). The field of pharmacogenetics and personalized medicine took a leap forward with publication of a recent multicenter global study, in which prospective trial results clearly validated the use of pharmacogenetic testing in avoiding a drug toxicity reaction. In a study of over 1900 HIV-1-infected patients, HLA-B*5701 screening prior to administering an abacavir-containing regimen, with avoidance of the antiretroviral abacavir in HLA-B*5701-positive patients, was shown to be a highly effective pharmacogenetic test. The screening test provided a clear actionable result with a perfect negative predictive value - 100% of hypersensitivity reactions were prevented by the application of the screening test. This article summarizes the study, compares the findings to previous publications on this topic and discusses factors that impact translating research developments in pharmacogenetics into widespread community practice.
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