HomeHIV/AIDS
HIV/AIDS
Promising HIV-1 and HSV-2 studies
US research has found a powerfully effective vaccine against herpes viruses that might also be a good candidate as a vaccine vector for other mucosal diseases, particularly HIV and tuberculosis. In separate research it was found valacyclovir reduces HIV-1 levels – even when patients do not have herpes.
Scientists moving closer to HIV vaccination
Salk scientists claim to be a step closer to creating a drug capable of preventing HIV by customising a powerful defence system used by many bacteria and training this scissor-like machinery to recognise the HI virus.
New HIV tx approach reduces deaths
A new low-cost approach to care for patients with advanced HIV in Tanzania and Zambia, combining community support and screening for a type of meningitis, has reduced deaths by 28%.
Tool visualises body SIV replication live
A non-invasive method has been developed to image simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) replication in real-time, in vivo. This allows for the capture of viral dynamics of SIV, the animal model of human HIV infection.
Study to look at new ARV tx for HCV
The US National Institutes of Health has launched a clinical trial to examine whether primary care physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants, can use a new antiviral therapy as effectively as specialist physicians to treat people with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection alone, or co-infected with HIV.
Young UK men in the dark over HIV
Three quarters of young men in the UK who are gay or bisexual don't receive any information about same-sex relationships at school, with two thirds going without HIV testing advice.
Viral load associated with fat gain
HIV infection or inflammatory changes associated with it may be responsible for fat accumulation and body fat redistribution, rather than HIV drugs, according to Case Western University research.
HIV attachment inhibitor 'well tolerated'
Fostemsavir, a first-in-class HIV attachment inhibitor that stops the virus from binding to and entering cells, was well-tolerated and demonstrated good antiviral activity a study has shown.
Need for repeat testing in pregnancy
A large proportion of women in sub-Saharan Africa who are at high risk of transmitting HIV to their infants during breastfeeding are likely still to be undiagnosed, a large three-country survey found.
Study first to combine PrEP and ART
Giving both pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and antiretroviral therapy (ART) to heterosexual couples where one partner has HIV can almost eliminate the chance of infection in the HIV-negative partner.
Inhibitor demonstrates high potency
A second-generation HIV maturation inhibitor, BMS-955176, demonstrated good safety and high potency, including activity against viral strains that were not susceptible to an earlier drug in this class, researchers have reported.
Stopping antibiotic during ART raises risk
Stopping cotrimoxazole prophylaxis in people taking antiretroviral therapy (ART) increases the risk of serious bacterial infections and malaria, even at high CD4 cell counts.
ARTs boost post-operative survival rates
Post-operative mortality rates were low among patients infected with HIV who are receiving ART, and those mortality rates were influenced as much by age and poor nutritional status as CD4 cell counts.
Virus itself controls replication
It is generally believed that HIV does not replicate in dormant immune cells. Now, two studies propose that the virus itself – not cells – controls whether HIV is replicating, and that periods of latency paradoxically give the virus a survival advantage.
Drug regime has chronic kidney disease risk
Three antiretroviral drugs are associated with a slowly increasing rate of chronic kidney disease over time.
Origin of AIDS viruses points to gorillas
Two of the four known groups of human Aids viruses (HIV-1 groups O and P) have originated in gorillas, according to an international team of scientists.
FDA approves single tablet regimen
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved Triumeq, ViiV Healthcare's single-tablet, triple-combination antiretroviral (ARV) regimen, as a first-line therapy to treat HIV. T
US-funded abstinence programmes fail
Nearly $1.3bn spent on US-funded programmes to promote abstinence and faithfulness in sub-Saharan Africa had no significant impact, an analysis of sexual behaviour data has shown.
HIV/TB combination reduces morbidity
Early HIV treatment, combined with therapy to prevent tuberculosis, sharply reduced morbidity in a randomised trial in Côte d'Ivoire.
PrEP successes in Europe and Canada
Two studies of PrEP in gay men and trans women in Europe and Canada have demonstrated that the availability of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) reduced the rate of infection by 86%.
Vaginal microbicide gel disappoints
FACTS 001, a South African study testing the efficacy against HIV of a vaginal microbicide gel found it was not efficacious enough to overcome the barriers to adherence posed by participants' lifestyles and especially their youth.
Combo regimen lowers mother-child transmission
The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendation of three-drug antiretroviral treatment during pregnancy leads to a significantly lower rate of mother-to-child HIV transmission, a seven-country randomised study as shown.
Novel drug candidate in fight against Aids
Scientists from the Scripps Research Institute have announced the creation of a novel drug candidate that is so potent and universally effective against HIV, it might work as part of an unconventional vaccine.
First HIV strain influences immune disruption
The strain of HIV someone is first infected with and its capacity to replicate in the body, can have a lasting influence on how the virus disrupts the immune system, according to a Zambia-Emory HIV Research Project study.
Promising treatment for HCV/HIV patients
Two studies using interferon-free drug regimens for HIV patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) resulted in high rates of sustained virologic response, which is a lack of detectable HCV RNA at least 12 weeks after completion of treatment.
Transmission is by 'undiagnosed and untreated’
Individuals infected but undiagnosed with HIV and diagnosed but not yet in medical care accounted for more than 90% of the estimated 45,000 United States HIV transmissions in 2009.
Liver disease and TB common in HIV patients
Liver disease and tuberculosis were common in a cohort of adult South African patients with HIV, according to data from a retrospective Johns Hopkins study.
Biomarkers help identify treatment strategies
Botswana-UPenn Partnership research shows that advanced HIV/TB patients are a heterogeneous population that should not be treated uniformly with response to immune interventions and that biomarkers can help identify treatment options.
Aggressive recombinant Cuba variant of HIV
Researchers at KU Leuven's Laboratory for Clinical and Epidemiological Virology report a recombinant form of HIV observed in patients in Cuba that shortens drastically the healthy phase and triggers rapid progression to Aids.
Hope for HIV/Aids patients with kidney disease
HIV-positive people with renal failure who get a donated kidney from another person with HIV/Aids fare as well as patients who get one from an uninfected donor, according to a South African study.
Study explains slow mixing of HIV variants
Most HIV epidemics are still dominated by the first strain that entered a particular population. New research offers an explanation of why the global mixing of HIV variants is so slow.
Sub-Saharan CD4 counts not rising
A study by Harvard Medical School has found that the average CD4 count in sub-Saharan African people diagnosed with HIV has not risen since 2002. Neither has the average CD4 count on initiation of treatment.
African studies show prevalence anomalies
A series of IAVI observational studies document extremely high HIV prevalence and incidence rates in some African populations and surprisingly low ones in others.
Guidelines recommend fracture risk screening
Screening for fracture risk should be a routine part of HIV care for all over-40s, recommend new international guidelines. All post-menopausal women, all men over 50 and people at high risk for fractures of any age should undergo DEXA screening.
Insights into possible HIV vaccinations
An MIT investigation suggest that sequentially administering several different forms of a potential HIV vaccine could stimulate a stronger immune response than delivering a cocktail of these variants all at once.
How HIV enters the brain
New research shows that HIV relies on proteins expressed by a type of immune cell, called 'mature monocytes', to enter the brain early during infection, causing inflammation and memory/cognitive problems.
Antibody-based molecules to fight HIV
Caltech researchers have developed antibody-based molecules that are more than 100 times better than our bodies' defences at binding to and neutralising HIV, when tested in vitro, suggesting a novel approach to engineering more effective HIV-fighting drugs.
Best to start therapy early and stay on
A French study that starting therapy immediately after infection and then interrupting it conferred no advantage compared to deferring treatment until CD4 counts fell below a certain figure. Only those who started therapy early and stayed on it had a significant advantage in terms of immune recovery.
HIV/Aids conspiracy theories persist
The idea that Aids was created as part of a US government-led conspiracy to decimate the African-American population remains salient to a significant minority of black people, according to qualitative research.
Digital storytelling to share secrets and fears
Children from poor backgrounds and with no previous technological experience are able to use digital storytelling to share their secrets and fears regarding HIV and Aids online, according to a University of East Finland doctoral study.