The polymerase chain reaction is a powerful technique for amplifying a few copies of double-stranded genetic material to millions of copies in a few hours. The sensitivity and specificity of the polymerase chain reaction technique depend to some extent on the nucleotide sequences of the oligonucleotide primer pair used in the amplification. We report new oligonucleotide primers and probes which can be used for the amplification and detection of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 provirus sequences of not only structural but also regulatory genes. These primers are very sensitive and specific and can be used for the detection of African and North American strains of human immunodeficiency virus type 1.