27 JULY 2018 VOLUME 19 ISSUE 30

Media Coverage

-- any Prevention Options -- Antibody Related ResearchSTI VaccinesHIV VaccineCombination PreventionMale and Female CondomsCureGeneralHormonal Contraceptives and HIVHPV VaccinesLubricantMicrobicidesMultipurpose Prevention TechnologiesPrEPTherapeutic VaccinesTreatmentVoluntary Medical Male Circumcision

• HIV charity funds PreP drugs in England and Northern Ireland

  The Terrence Higgins Trust’s PrEP Access Fund will help 1,000 individuals in England and Northern Ireland for three months at a time, taking the form of vouchers for the PrEP provider Dynamix.

  July 26, 2018

  PrEP

  The Guardian

• 2020 AIDS meeting in Bay Area sparks early controversy

  The 2020 International AIDS Conference (IAC) in San Francisco and Oakland is still two years away, but protests around it have already erupted, with activists objecting to US government policies as discriminatory.

  July 26, 2018

  General

  MedPage Today

• PrEP use linked to fewer new HIV infections in US states

  As pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) use continues to grow, epidemiological evidence is starting to show an association between increases in PrEP uptake and declines in new infections.

  July 26, 2018

  PrEP

  aidsmap

• HIV experts call for an end to 'unscientific laws' that include imprisonment

  AIDS experts called Wednesday for an end to laws that can see HIV-positive people jailed for exposing others to the virus, saying the approach was "unscientific" and worsening the killer epidemic.

  July 26, 2018

  First Post

• 2-drug HIV regimen comparable to 3-drug regimen in treatment-naïve patients

  New results from 2 phase 3 studies evaluating the safety and efficacy of the 2-drug regimen of dolutegravir (DTG) and lamivudine (3TC) for treatment-naïve patients infected with HIV-1 with baseline viral loads up to 500,000 c/mL reveal that the 2-drug regimen is noninferior to a 3-drug regimen of DTG and 2 nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), tenofovir disoproxil fumarate/emtricitabine (TDF/FTC).

  July 25, 2018

  Treatment

  Contagion Live

• HIV vaccine test trial on cards for Zim

  Zimbabwe has been listed along with other sub-Saharan countries for a test trial on an HIV vaccine which would help end the disease.

  July 25, 2018

  HIV Vaccine

  Newsday

• UNICEF warns of HIV crisis in teen girls, with 20 cases every hour

  Teenagers, and particularly girls, are bearing the brunt of the global AIDS epidemic with around 30 adolescents becoming infected with HIV every hour, according to a report by the United Nations children’s fund UNICEF.

  July 25, 2018

  General

  Reuters

• HIV vax in advanced trial posts promising 2-Year results

  The experimental HIV vaccine currently under investigation in an advanced trial has shown promising 96-week results from an earlier human study. The so-called mosaic vaccine offered a broad array of immune responses to the virus at this point, and such responses persisted up to a year after the last vaccination shot.

  July 25, 2018

  HIV Vaccine

  POZ

• Gilead's Truvada for PrEP can reduce HIV rates, but activists decry unequal access

  Groups around the world are working hard to develop HIV vaccines, but in the meantime, Gilead Sciences reports that Truvada can significantly reduce the rate of new infections when used as a pre-exposure prophylaxis. With concerns over access, activists are asking the government to break the company's patent to end the HIV epidemic.

  July 25, 2018

  PrEP

  Fierce Pharma

• Test and treat studies show high rates of HIV diagnosis, viral suppression

  Large-scale community campaigns that go beyond the HIV clinic to offer testing and link people to HIV care have been piloted in several African countries, adopting methods such as door-to-door testing and community health events to reach people who might not attend health facilities or otherwise be offered an opportunity to test for HIV.

  July 25, 2018

  aidsmap

• Donor funding for HIV stalls, increasing pressure on high-burden countries to mobilise domestic resources

  Falling levels of donor government funding for HIV programmes threaten progress towards the 2020 global target of 90-90-90, according to research presented on Wednesday at the 22nd International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2018).

  July 25, 2018

  aidsmap

• Transgender hormonal therapy might interfere with PrEP

  Transgender women who were taking feminizing hormone therapy and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV infection showed a small but possibly important decline in serum levels of tenofovir, one of the two ingredients in the PrEP formulation, researchers reported here.

  July 25, 2018

  PrEP

  MedPage Today

• On-demand dosing as effective as daily dosing in first year of French PrEP study

  There have been no new HIV infections in the 1628 people taking part in a demonstration study of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in France. Over half of participants chose to use on-demand dosing for PrEP, with the rest opting for daily dosing, but both have been equally effective.

  July 24, 2018

  PrEP

  aidsmap

• Adherence to PrEP, the HIV prevention drug, is low. A new study suggests a pill with a tiny sensor might help

  With a daily pill, people who face an elevated risk of exposure to HIV can dramatically lower their chances of contracting the virus. But that protection is only effective if people adhere to a strict regimen with their prescription. Many do not….A solution, researchers say, may come in the form of a digital pill — one equipped with a sensor about the size of a grain of salt.

  July 24, 2018

  PrEP

  STAT

• Undetectable meant zero HIV transmissions after 89,000 condomless sex acts

  The long-awaited results from the PARTNER2 study of mixed-HIV-status gay male couples are finally in. Presented today at the International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam (AIDS 2018), the prospective observational study saw zero transmissions between study partners when the HIV-positive partner had a fully suppressed viral load, even after nearly 77,000 condomless anal sex acts.

  July 24, 2018

  Treatment

  POZ

• Hormone treatment tied to lower Truvada level in trans women on PrEP

  Feminizing hormone treatments appear to lower the body’s level of one of the drugs in Truvada (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate/emtricitabine) when the combination antiretroviral tablet is used as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) against HIV among transgender women.

  July 24, 2018

  PrEP

  POZ

• Dolutegravir-based ART recommended for all – if reliable contraception is available

  The World Health Organization has issued new antiretroviral treatment guidelines recommending dolutegravir-based treatment as the preferred first-line treatment option for all adults, adolescents and children, including women and adolescent girls who have access to consistent and reliable contraception.

  July 24, 2018

  Hormonal Contraceptives and HIV, Treatment

  aidsmap

• Science trumps HIV stigma: ‘When we are undetectable we can’t pass the virus on’

  Gay and bisexual men on successful treatment for HIV cannot pass the virus on to their sexual partners….New data, unveiled at the International AIDS 2018 conference, backs up the findings of previous studies. When someone with HIV whose treatment has suppressed.

  July 24, 2018

  Treatment

  Gay Star News

• Scientists report setbacks in quest for AIDS cure

  Scientists reported several setbacks in the quest for a cure to AIDS on Tuesday, highlighting concerns about inconclusive evidence that links a promising new drug to birth defects.

  July 24, 2018

  Cure

  AFP

• Dutch gov't commits extra €10 mil to AIDS prevention

  The Dutch government is committing an extra 10 million euros to making HIV prevention and AIDS inhibitors more accessible to vulnerable groups, such as men who have sex with other men, drug users, trans people, young people and sex workers.

  July 24, 2018

  General

  NL Times

• Rapid treatment initiation and less time with detectable HIV linked to falls in new HIV diagnoses in San Francisco and Melbourne

  More rapid initiation of treatment after diagnosis – and the shortening of the period with detectable viral load – has coincided with substantial declines in new HIV diagnoses in San Francisco and Melbourne, research groups from the two cities reported on Tuesday at the 22nd International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2018) in Amsterdam.

  July 24, 2018

  Treatment

  aidsmap

• Mobile HIV test and treatment clinic hits the road

  Given increased focus in South Africa on identifying those people living with HIV who remain undiagnosed, and on improving the uptake of ART, Shout-it-Now has designed a new community-based HIV screening and immediate ART initiation service.

  July 23, 2018

  Treatment

  Citizen

• Uganda: 83 percent Ugandans with HIV show unseen virus - survey

  Uganda is a step closer to achieving 90 per cent of the people living with HIV/AIDS having the amount of the virus in their bodies suppressed by 2020, as one of the global targets set to end the AIDS epidemic.

  July 23, 2018

  Treatment

  All Africa

• Miles to go: Closing the gaps, breaking barriers, righting injustices

  HIV prevention services are not being provided on an adequate scale and with sufficient intensity and are not reaching the people who need them the most. Acceptance of condoms, voluntary medical male circumcision, pre- exposure prophylaxis, cash transfers must be increased rapidly and not be secondary prevention tools

  July 23, 2018

  General

  POZ

• Desperate Venezuela HIV patients, unable to get life-saving drugs, try DIY remedies

  For people with chronic diseases like HIV, the crisis can be deadly. As reports of HIV-related complications and deaths rise, it’s as if Venezuela has stepped back in time, said Jesus Aguais, the founder of Aid For AIDS, an international non-profit that delivers unused HIV medication from abroad to needy Venezuelans.

  July 23, 2018

  Treatment

  Miami Herald

• Is toxic masculinity increasing the spread of HIV in Uganda?

  The reasons behind this disparity are complex, but largely boil down to different forms of gender inequality. HIV prevalence is four times higher among young women than young men.

  July 23, 2018

  General

  New Vision

• AIDS 2018: Undetectable equals Untransmittable

  Science Speaks is covering the 22nd International AIDS Conference this week live from Amsterdam, the Netherlands, with breaking news, updates and analysis of new research findings, evidence-based responses, and community action for global access to HIV treatment and prevention.

  July 23, 2018

  Treatment

  Science Speaks

• Helping the ‘PrEP Shop Boys’ to get AIDS drugs

  A South African doctor linked up with AIDS activists in the Netherlands to smuggle HIV medicine to them from South Africa in a nifty inversion of the usual foreign aid story – and a tribute to how cheaply the South African government has been able to procure antiretroviral medicine. The International AIDS Conference opens today (23 July) in Amsterdam.

  July 23, 2018

  PrEP

  Daily Maverick

• Why the AIDS conference still matters at this point in the HIV epidemic

  There are many reasons why the end of the AIDS epidemic is not yet in sight and why the International AIDS Conference still matters. Here is a case in support of this important bi-annual meeting on the eve of the largest gathering of the HIV/AIDS “world” in Amsterdam from Monday night.

  July 23, 2018

  General

  Daily Maverick

• Pfizer and GSK’s HIV/AIDS division, ViiV, prevents children with HIV from getting needed medicine

  As the annual global HIV/AIDS conference gets underway in Amsterdam, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is calling out ViiV Healthcare – a division of US and UK pharmaceutical corporations Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline, plus Japan’s Shionogi – for preventing children with HIV from getting child-appropriate formulations of a critical HIV medicine, dolutegravir.

  July 23, 2018

  Treatment

  MSF

• Biker nun on a mission to free Tanzania from grip of HIV

  Today, Costigan is at the forefront of an HIV campaign that could be a template for other low-income countries. The programme – run jointly by pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences and the Vatican – is promoting mass checks, with treatment then offered to anyone who tests positive, regardless of their clinical stage.

  July 22, 2018

  Treatment

  The Guardian

• PEPFAR at 15 years

  The US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief celebrates its 15th anniversary this year, prompting calls for continued support for the initiative. Paul Webster reports.

  July 21, 2018

  General

  Lancet

• Nova Scotia will fund HIV-prevention drug PrEP with pharmacare

  Nova Scotia will cover the HIV-prevention drug PrEP under the provincial pharmacare program, the government announced Friday.

  July 20, 2018

  PrEP

  CBC

• Published Opposites Attract study supports preventive power of being undetectable

  In Opposites Attract, the participants contracted sexually transmitted infections (STIs) at a high rate and yet still did not transmit HIV among them. This fact helps challenge the presumption that contracting STIs may raise the risk of HIV transmission even when the partner with the virus has a fully suppressed viral load according to his most recent test.

  July 20, 2018

  Treatment

  POZ

Published Research

-- any Prevention Options -- Antibody Related ResearchSTI VaccinesHIV VaccineCombination PreventionMale and Female CondomsCureGeneralHormonal Contraceptives and HIVHPV VaccinesLubricantMicrobicidesMultipurpose Prevention TechnologiesPrEPTherapeutic VaccinesTreatmentVoluntary Medical Male Circumcision

• Tenofovir and tenofovir-diphosphate concentrations during pregnancy among HIV-uninfected women using oral preexposure prophylaxis

  Pregnancy is a time of increased HIV acquisition risk and pregnancy reduces concentrations of antiretrovirals used for treatment. We assessed whether pregnancy lowers concentrations of tenofovir (TFV) and tenofovir-diphosphate (TFV-DP) among HIV-uninfected women using oral preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP).

  August 24, 2018

  PrEP

  AIDS

• Neurodevelopment of breastfed HIV-exposed uninfected and HIV-unexposed children in South Africa

  To assess neurodevelopment of breastfed HIV-exposed uninfected (HEU) and breastfed HIV-unexposed children in the context of universal maternal antiretroviral therapy (ART).

  July 27, 2018

  AIDS

• HIV status disclosure during acute HIV infection in Malawi

  Most participants reported disclosing to a sexual partner within a month of diagnosis, and knew or had a strong suspicion about the source of their infection. Participants often assumed their source had knowingly infected them, contributing to anger and feeling that disclosure is futile if the source already knew their HIV status.

  July 26, 2018

  PLoS One

• “Free Testing and PrEP without Outing Myself to Parents:” Motivation to participate in oral and injectable PrEP clinical trials among adolescent men who have sex with men

  Understanding the motivations of adolescent male who have sex with men (AMSM) to participate in HIV biomedical prevention studies is important to ensure their agreement is voluntary without misunderstanding and undue influence. This study examined AMSM attitudes toward participation in oral/injectable PrEP RCTs to inform protections of youth’s rights and welfare in future studies.

  July 25, 2018

  PLoS One

• Assessing the risk of dolutegravir for women of childbearing potential

  Data from May 2018 from Botswana have suggested a potential increased risk of neural tube defects (NTDs) in infants born to women with periconception exposure to the antiretroviral drug dolutegravir.

  July 23, 2018

  Hormonal Contraceptives and HIV, Treatment

  Lancet Global Health

• Contraceptive rings promote vaginal lactobacilli in a high bacterial vaginosis prevalence population: A randomised, open-label longitudinal study in Rwandan women

  We hypothesized that a contraceptive vaginal ring (CVR) containing oestrogen enhances a lactobacilli-dominated vaginal microbial community despite biomass accumulation on the CVR’s surface.

  July 23, 2018

  Microbicides

  PLoS One

• Gender aspects on HIV prevention efforts and participation in HIV vaccine trials among police officers in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

  These findings increase understanding of gender differences and context specific efforts towards HIV prevention. Individuals’ assertiveness against risky sexual practices and the intention to participate in HIV vaccine trials to develop an effective vaccine are worth noting.

  July 21, 2018

  HIV Vaccine

  BMC Public Health

• How empowered are girls/young women in their sexual relationships? Relationship power, HIV risk, and partner violence in Kenya

  Gendered power dynamics within couple relationships can constrain women from achieving positive sexual and reproductive health outcomes. But little is known about relationship power among adolescents, and tools to measure it are rarely validated among adolescents.

  July 19, 2018

  PLoS One

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