HIV-1 neutralizing antibodies in urine from seropositive individuals

HIV-1 neutralizing activity was demonstrated in serum and 200-fold concentrated urine from individuals who were HIV-1 antibody positive in both their serum and urine, including AIDS-KS, AIDS-OI, ARC, and asymptomatic patients. Virus neutralization activity was detected in 23 of 56 (41.1%) of the serum samples and in 19 of 56 (33.9%) of the urine samples tested, with titers ranging from 1:8 to 1:256 and 1:1 to 1:4, respectively. The highest frequency of HIV-1 neutralizing activity (87.5%) and the highest mean neutralization titers (1:65) were found in the ARC patients. A high prevalence of p24 antigen in serum and low numbers of T4-lymphocytes correlated with a low frequency of neutralizing activity in either serum or urine in the infected individuals. HIV-1 neutralizing activity in the urine was shown to be due to immunoglobulins using a Sephadex G-100 filtration gel. All 19 urine samples with neutralizing activity contained antibodies reactive with envelope glycoproteins gp160, gp120, and gp41 by Western blot, similar to that seen with serum. The frequency of HIV-1 neutralizing activity in the urine concentrates was generally associated with high titers of neutralizing antibody in the corresponding serum. These findings suggest that HIV-1 neutralizing antibodies are lost in the urine by an as yet unknown mechanism.