20 MARCH 2020 VOLUME 22 ISSUE 11

Media Coverage

• HIV-Positive Population Braces for Another Plague

  Mysterious deaths and experimental drugs are all too familiar to survivors of the 1980s epidemic.

  March 20, 2020

  General

  Foreign Policy

• HIV Patients Raise Concerns on Coronavirus

  A section of people living with HIV and AIDS have called on the government to make urgent interventions to safeguard them from adverse effects of the new coronavirus. They accused the government of neglecting the vulnerable group facing the risk of severe illness from the virus, due to their compromised immune system.

  March 20, 2020

  General

  The Daily Nation (Kenya)

• Lawmakers Urge Trump Admin to Protect Those with HIV Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

  Eleven Democratic senators called on the Trump administration Thursday to recognize the particular needs of people living with HIV as it responds to the global coronavirus outbreak.

  March 19, 2020

  General

  NBC News

• Africans with Disabilities are at Higher Risk of HIV

  Studies show that Africans with disabilities are at least twice as likely to get hiv as those without. And they are less likely to receive treatment.

  March 19, 2020

  General

  Economist

• Child With HIV Maintains Viral Suppression for Three Years off Treatment

  A four-year-old child who acquired HIV during gestation, started antiretroviral therapy (ART) within two days after birth and stopped a year later has now been in sustained remission for three years post-treatment, according to a report at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI 2020).

  March 18, 2020

  Treatment

  aidsmap

• Using Biktarvy Instead of Descovy Could Simplify PEP and On-Demand PrEP in Monkeys

  Searching for a way to simplify the dosing requirements for on-demand pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) as well as the length of time required to complete post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), researchers conducting research in monkeys have found that adding the integrase inhibitor bictegravir to Descovy (tenofovir alafenamide/emtricitabine) showed promise in addressing both of these needs.

  March 17, 2020

  PrEP

  POZ

• South Africa is Taking Drastic Steps to Save its High-risk Population from Coronavirus

  So far, the country has reported 116 confirmed cases (but no deaths) of coronavirus, which has killed more than 7,500 people globally. The number is increasing—something which could spell disaster for South Africa’s already overburdened healthcare system.

  March 17, 2020

  General

  Quartz Africa

• Coronavirus Vaccine Dreams

  I find myself fantasizing about a Covid-19 vaccine that will get us back to living our lives. About a triumphant announcement that the trial was a resounding success, and science has won, that there is a safe effective vaccine in production, and that we should all line up to get our shots — a vaccine that will give us back freedom of association, freedom of travel, freedom from the various kinds of worry, anxiety and fear that are filling our news cycles and our minds. It’s a comforting fantasy, but for now it’s just a fantasy.

  March 16, 2020

  General

  New York Times

• Study Shows PEPFAR Program for Adolescent Girls Should Be Modified

  Study findings presented at CROI showed that a United States-funded program designed to reduce the risk for HIV infection in adolescent girls and young women in high-burden countries had some impact among teenagers in Uganda, but several interventions produced no effects and researchers said the program needs to be modified.

  March 16, 2020

  General

  Healio

• Coronavirus Vaccine Trial Now Underway in Seattle

  The first human clinical trial of a vaccine for the new coronavirus that causes the respiratory illness COVID-19 started this week in Seattle, according to an announcement from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

  March 16, 2020

  General

  POZ

• PrEP: Preventative HIV drug available in England from April

  A drug that prevents the transmission of the HIV virus will be available in England from April, the Department of Health has confirmed. PrEP - or pre-exposure prophylaxis - is an antiretroviral medicine which, taken once a day, stops the transmission of HIV during unprotected sex. The pill is already available in Scotland and Wales to people at risk of contracting the virus. It is estimated there are about 103,800 people living with HIV in the UK.

  March 15, 2020

  PrEP

  BBC

• Good News, Bad News in HIV Prevention Research

  There was good news and bad news in terms of HIV vaccine and therapeutics research, with several vaccine trials pushing forward even as one came to a premature halt.

  March 13, 2020

  Antibody Related Research, HIV Vaccine

  MedPage Today

• Unique Transgender Vulnerabilities Require Tailored and Specific Interventions

  The virtual Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI 2020) this week has included research assessing HIV prevalence, risk, access and adherence to medication in transgender women and men in the United States, Kenya and Zimbabwe.

  March 13, 2020

  aidsmap

Published Research

• A Trial of Lopinavir–Ritonavir in Adults Hospitalized with Severe Covid-19

  In hospitalized adult patients with severe Covid-19, no benefit was observed with lopinavir–ritonavir treatment beyond standard care. Future trials in patients with severe illness may help to confirm or exclude the possibility of a treatment benefit.

  March 18, 2020

  General

  NEJM

• Vaginal siRNA Delivery: Overview on Novel Delivery Approaches

  In order to enhance vaginal delivery of siRNA, nanocarrier systems like lipid-based delivery systems, macromolecular systems, polymeric nanoparticles, aptamer and cell-penetrating peptides have been investigated widely until date. The present article elaborates on various nanocarriers and their promising outcomes at preclinical stage and future implications of nanocarrier-based siRNA vaginal delivery.

  March 18, 2020

  Microbicides

  Drug Delivery and Translational Research

• A Phase 1b Randomized Study of the Safety and Immunological Responses to Vaccination With H4:IC31, H56:IC31, and BCG Revaccination in Mycobacterium Tuberculosis-Uninfected Adolescents in Cape Town, South Africa

  BCG revaccination administered as a single dose ID and both H4:IC31 and H56:IC31 administered as 2 doses IM had acceptable safety profiles in healthy, QFT-negative, previously BCG-vaccinated adolescents. Characterization of the assays and the immunogenicity of these vaccines may help to identify valuable markers of protection for upcoming immune correlates analyses of C-040-404 and future TB vaccine efficacy trials.

  March 18, 2020

  General

  EClinicalMedicine

• Neutralizing Antibody VRC01 Failed to Select for HIV-1 Mutations Upon Viral Rebound

  Our results showed that viremia rebounded despite the absence of HIV-1 adaptation to VRC01 and an average VRC01 trough of 221µg/mL. While VRC01 levels were insufficient to prevent a resurgent infection, knowledge that they did not mediate Env mutations in acute-like viruses is relevant for antibody-based strategies in acute infection.

  March 17, 2020

  Antibody Related Research

  JCI

• How PrEP Users Constitute a Community in the MSM Population Through Their Specific Experience and Management of Stigmatization. The Example of the French ANRS-PREVENIR Study

  Results showed that stigma concerning PrEP use is a complex issue, with various kinds of stigmatization being practiced, sometimes even by the wider MSM population and PrEP users themselves. All types of stigma identified were expressed in forms of verbal abuse which made PrEP use taboo. Inside the wider MSM population a PrEP-user “community” was identified which shared a certain complicity in terms of values and a positive attitude towards PrEP.

  March 16, 2020

  PrEP

  AIDS Care

• ‘I’m Waiting for That’: Interest in the Use of PrEP for Safer Conception in Botswana

  We conducted qualitative in-depth interviews in Gaborone, Botswana with 10 HIV healthcare providers and 10 women living with HIV of childbearing age because they act as a key conduit for reaching sero-different partners with information about PrEP. We examined knowledge and attitudes towards PrEP to assess the viability and develop a deeper understanding of this SC option. Interviews were analysed using an interpretive phenomenological approach.

  March 16, 2020

  PrEP

  Global Public Health

• Prevention of HIV Transmission With Sperm Washing Within Fertile Serodiscordant Couples Undergoing Non-Stimulated Intrauterine Insemination

  No seroconversion was detected in the 69 women treated with sperm washing followed by IUI or in any of the newborns (tested at birth and at 3 months of age). Sperm washing followed by IUI is a safe and effective treatment option for serodiscordant couples wishing to conceive and to prevent HIV virus transmission to the mothers and newborns.

  March 16, 2020

  General

  AIDS Care

• Low Willingness to Pay for Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Among Men Who Have Sex With Men (MSM) in China

  The overall willingness to pay for the market rate of PrEP was low among this urban sample of Chinese MSM. Programs aiming to promote PrEP pay willingness should provide enhanced counseling to improve PrEP-related cognition, deliver accurate HIV/PrEP information to increase health literacy, and decrease stigma towards sexual minorities to develop trust with health professionals.

  March 16, 2020

  PrEP

  BMC Public Health

• Advances in Long-Acting Agents for the Treatment of HIV Infection

  This review provides an outline of the current landscape of long-acting antiretroviral therapy for HIV treatment, both approved and under development, including cabotegravir, rilpivirine, leronlimab, islatravir, albuvirtide, GS-6207, and broadly neutralizaing antibodies. However, there are a number of research gaps for long-acting antiretroviral therapy including issues regarding resistance and understudied populations, and this review highlights some of the challenges that will need to be addressed for clinical implementation of these novel treatment modalities.

  March 16, 2020

  Treatment

  Drugs

• Barriers to HIV Testing Uptake Among Men in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Scoping Review

  Structural and individual factors present barriers to HIV testing uptake among men in SSA. Community and home-based initiatives have the potential to improve the uptake of HIV testing among men in SSA, considering the confidentiality concerns posed by clinic settings.

  March 15, 2020

  General

  African Journal of AIDS Research

• Are We on the Precipice of a New Epidemic? Risk for Hepatitis C Among HIV-Negative Men-, Trans Women-, and Trans Men- Who Have Sex With Men in the United States

  In multivariable modeling, being cisgender male (vs. not) was associated with having a lower HCV-MOSAIC risk score. Meanwhile, being white, having been incarcerated, prior use of HIV pre- or post-exposure prophylaxis, having ever been tested for HIV, and recent methamphetamine use were associated with high risk for HCV. More than one-in-four participants exceeded the threshold score for HCV risk.

  March 15, 2020

  General

  AIDS Care

• Failure of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis With Daily TDF/FTC and the Scenario of Delayed HIV Seroconversion

  Failure of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) with tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and emtricitabine occurs uncommonly despite perfect adherence, resulting in breakthrough HIV infection. Delayed seroconversion associated with antiretroviral use may complicate the picture, causing uncertainties in interpreting adherence pattern for establishing the true cause of PrEP failure.

  March 13, 2020

  PrEP

  International Journal of Infectious Diseases

• Rapid Uptake of Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) after Significant Price Reduction in Germany Highlights Importance of PrEP Accessibility

  The majority used PrEP to compensate for risk of HIV infection when having condomless anal intercourse. At start of PrEP implementation, the majority perceived their own risk to acquire HIV as none to medium, while only a subset considered themselves to be at high or very high risk for HIV infection. In contrast, within the last 6 months 28.4 percent of the PrEP users had an STI diagnosis and over 70 percent had condomless anal intercourse with more than 6 partners.

  March 13, 2020

  PrEP

  AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses

• An HIV-1 Vaccine Based on Bacterium-Like Particles Elicits Env-Specific Mucosal Immune Responses

  We found that gp120 trimers bound to BLPs delivered via i.n. drip successfully induced Env-specific sIgA at mucosal sites in mice. Furthermore, nasal washes from guinea pigs immunized via i.n. drip showed neutralizing activity against HIV-1 tier 1 pseudoviruses. Thus, gp120 trimers bound to BLPs may be an effective vaccine strategy against HIV-1.

  March 12, 2020

  HIV Vaccine

  Immunology Letters

• Effectiveness of the Female Condom in Preventing HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

  The use of female plus male condoms is more effective than use of male condoms only in preventing STIs and may be as effective as the male condom only in preventing HIV. There is a need for well conducted studies assessing the effects of newer female condoms on HIV and STIs.

  March 12, 2020

  Male and Female Condoms

  BMC Public Health

• Reported Preexposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Use Among Male Sex Partners of HIV-Positive Men—2016–2018

  PrEP use was reported among 1 in 5 partners, with disparities between black and white partners. Increasing PrEP use and decreasing racial/ethnic disparities could reduce disparities in HIV incidence and help end the US HIV epidemic.

  March 11, 2020

  PrEP

  AIDS

• Non-Daily Use of HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis in a Large Online Survey of Primarily Men Who Have Sex with Men in the US

  Given substantial interest in non-daily PrEP, and use of non-daily strategies that have not been evaluated in clinical studies, there is a need for US public health authorities to provide guidance on safe and effective non-daily dosing for MSM.

  March 9, 2020

  PrEP

  JAIDS

• HIV Oral Self-Testing for Male Partners of Women Attending Antenatal Care in Central Uganda: Uptake and Linkage to Care Post-Test in a Randomized Trial

  Our results demonstrate an enormous increase in self-reported partner HIV testing when HIVST is available at home. However, men testing positive through HIVST appeared less likely to link to care than men testing positive at a clinic. These results highlight the potential of HIVST in increasing HIV testing rates, while underscoring the importance of developing effective approaches to maximizing linkage to care among those testing positive through HIVST.

  March 9, 2020

  General

  JAIDS

• Comparison of the Antiviral Activity of the Microbicide Candidate Griffithsin and Its Tandemers Derivatives Against Different Modes of HIV-1 Transmission

  Tandemers 2MG, 2MG3, 3MG and 4MG are derivatives of the potent anti-HIV-1 microbicide candidate griffithsin (GRFT). We compared these compounds anti-HIV-1 activity to GRFT using the viruses CAP206.08 and CAAN5342.A2 that have decreased sensitivity to this lectin. The 2MG and 2MG3 tandemers had similar activity to GRFT against cell-free and cell-associated viruses, while 3MG and 4MG were significantly more potent.

  February 5, 2020

  Microbicides

  Virology

Announcements