8 MARCH 2019 VOLUME 20 ISSUE 9

Media Coverage

• ‘Molecular Scissors’ Successfully Remove HIV Genes from All Tissues in Infected Monkeys

  The top story from the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI 2019) in Seattle this week has been a likely second HIV cure. However, the cure involved an expensive and risky therapy – a bone-marrow transplant – that would never be broadly applicable.

  March 8, 2019

  Cure

  aidsmap

• Descovy Is Non-inferior to Truvada for Daily Prep

  A daily pill containing the newer formulation of tenofovir in combination with emtricitabine (Descovy) had a comparable protective effect to the existing daily pill which contains the older tenofovir and emtricitabine (Truvada), Dr Brad Hare of the Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center told the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI 2019) in Seattle today. As expected, the newer formulation had better bone and kidney safety outcomes.

  March 7, 2019

  PrEP

  aidsmap

• Monthly Shots Control HIV As Well As Pills in Two Big Studies

  Monthly shots of HIV drugs worked as well as daily pills to control the virus that causes AIDS in two large international tests, researchers reported Thursday.

  March 7, 2019

  PrEP

  Associated Press

• PrEP Use Jumps to 35 Percent among Gay and Bi Men at Risk of HIV

  Thirty-five percent of gay and bisexual men at high risk of HIV infection were using PrEP, or pre-exposure prophylaxis, the daily pill that prevents HIV infection, in 2017, according to data released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2014, just 6 percent of these men used PrEP.

  March 7, 2019

  PrEP

  NBC News

• Injectable, Long-acting PrEP Could Be Next in Combatting HIV

  News the “London patient” has become the second-person ever found in remission of HIV has been hailed as a medical triumph, but new developments with pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, could mark additional steps in combatting the disease.

  March 6, 2019

  PrEP

  Washington Blade

• PrEP Use in Persons With Undetected HIV Infections Contributes to Resistance

  With antimicrobial resistance at the top of the World Health Organization’s top 10 global health threats of 2019, it’s only natural that resistance is also at top of mind for those on the frontlines of the HIV epidemic.

  March 6, 2019

  PrEP, Treatment

  Contagion Live

• Using EHR Data to Identify Potential PrEP Candidates in a Large Health Care System

  It is well known that HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is effective in preventing HIV acquisition but, despite this fact, PrEP has not been widely prescribed to individuals who are at an increased risk of HIV exposure. When considering ways to increase the uptake of PrEP, a team of investigators hypothesized that using data from electronic health records (EHR) could be a method to identify patients who are at a higher risk for HIV and could benefit from PrEP.

  March 6, 2019

  PrEP

  Contagion Live

• A Second Person Is in HIV Remission. What This Means for a Cure

  A man in London has been in remission from HIV for the past year and a half, making him the second known adult to be in remission and potentially cured of the infection.

  March 5, 2019

  Cure

  Healthline

• Testing Everyone for HIV Leads to Drop in Infection by a Third

  Testing everyone in a community for HIV and offering immediate treatment to all those who test positive can cut the number of new infections by around a third, according to new research.

  March 5, 2019

  General, Treatment

  Telegraph

• Here's How to Get onto England's PrEP Trial

  When the England PrEP IMPACT Trial opened in October 2017, there was a tidal-wave of people rushing to get one of the 10,000 places on the Trial. Given this is the only current way of being able to get free PrEP through the NHS in England, it’s no surprise that many of the Trial’s clinics were full in under a year.

  March 5, 2019

  PrEP

  Gay Star News

• Strengthening HIV Prevention for Sex Workers in Zimbabwe

  Just over half (54.7 percent) of female sex workers in Zimbabwe reported being adherent to either condoms or pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP). But what are the factors influencing uptake of these two prevention interventions?

  March 5, 2019

  Male and Female Condoms, PrEP

  Avert

• CROI 2019: Thailand’s Strides Spanned HIV Treatment, Prevention and Research

  Thailand has achieved the first part of UNAIDS’ 90-90-90 targets: 98 percent of people infected with HIV know their status. Of that, 70 percent are receiving HIV treatment, and of them, 83 percent are virally suppressed. Thailand is on the right path to achieve HIV epidemic control, Praphan Phanuphak of the Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Center said as he delivered the N’Galy Mann Lecture, because the country has not shied away from taking risks in their HIV response and employing innovative methods to reach the most high-risk groups – lessons that could be applied in the U.S., he said.

  March 5, 2019

  General

  Science Speaks

• HIV Is Reported Cured in a Second Patient, a Milestone in the Global AIDS Epidemic

  For just the second time since the global epidemic began, a patient appears to have been cured of infection with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

  March 4, 2019

  Cure

  New York Times

• Officials Encourage Non-daily Prep Strategy for Low-risk People

  Since July 2012, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has encouraged the daily use of Truvada as a HIV prevention strategy (i.e. PrEP). But these days, new strategies are emerging for those who’d rather not practice PrEP every day.

  March 4, 2019

  PrEP

  HIV Plus Mag

• Study Shows Drugs Can Help HIV Discordant Couples Conceive Safely

  The combined use of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and antiretroviral therapy (ART) can help HIV discordant couples have safe pregnancies, a new research shows.

  March 4, 2019

  PrEP, Treatment

  Daily Nation

• Namibia: USAID Provides N$240 Million for HIV Prevention

  THE United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has given N$240 million towards a programme that seeks to reduce new HIV infections among adolescent girls and young women in Namibia.

  March 4, 2019

  General

  All Africa

Published Research

• Induction of a Robust Humoral Response Using HIV-1 VLPMPER-V3 as a Novel Candidate Vaccine in BALB/c Mice

  This study showed that VLP MPER-V3 as a potential vaccine candidate has the potency as an effective prophylactic vaccine and this finding guarantees further investigations to achieve a promising HIV-1 vaccine candidate

  March 8, 2019

  HIV Vaccine

  Current HIV Research

• Evidence for Both Intermittent and Persistent Compartmentalization of HIV-1 in the Female Genital Tract

  Our data indicates that, in some women, HIV-1 populations within the genital tract can have Env genetic features that differ from those of viruses in plasma: a factor which could potentially impact the sensitivity of viruses in the genital tract to vaginal microbicides and vaccine-elicited antibodies.

  March 8, 2019

  HIV Vaccine, Microbicides

  Journal of Virology

• Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC) for Prevention of Heterosexual Transmission of HIV and Risk Compensation in Adult Males in Soweto: Findings from a Programmatic Setting

  No significant risk compensation was observed in this study on comparing pre-and post-circumcision behaviour. An increase in proportion of participants in the 18-24 years age group who had vaginal intercourse in the first 12 months post-circumcision as a possibility of risk compensation was minimal and negated by an increase in proportion of those reporting using a condom at the last sex act, increase in knowledge of partner's HIV status and lack of increase in alcohol post-circumcision.

  March 7, 2019

  Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision

  PLoS One

• Long-Acting Injectable Antiretroviral Treatment Acceptability and Preferences: A Qualitative Study Among US Providers, Adults Living with HIV, and Parents of Youth Living with HIV

  Although providers were wary about a potential negative impact on consistent engagement in care, they predicted that patients, especially those with adherence challenges, would be enthusiastic about LAI options. Many PLWH, especially young adults, welcomed the option of an LAI-ART regimen; however, others feared injections and expressed concerns about possible side effects, dosing more frequent than every 2 weeks, additional costs, and lower efficacy....

  March 7, 2019

  Treatment

  AIDS Patient Care and STDs

• Contrasting Self-Perceived Need and Guideline-Based Indication for HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Among Young, Black Men Who Have Sex with Men Offered Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis in Atlanta, Georgia

  Study participants endorsed perceptions that PrEP is only for people with very high levels of sexual activity. Only one participant perceived incident sexually transmitted infection (STI) to be an indication for PrEP, despite the fact that several of the participants had a history of an STI diagnosis. These findings point to an opportunity for clinician intervention at diagnosis. Disconnect between self-perceived and guidance-based PrEP indications, as well as other factors such as medical mistrust or difficulty with access, may contribute to low PrEP uptake among YBMSM.

  March 7, 2019

  PrEP

  AIDS Patient Care and STDs

• Design, Formulation, and Evaluation of Novel Dissolving Microarray Patches Containing Rilpivirine for Intravaginal Delivery

  Rilpivirine (RPV) is detected systemically, in lymph and vaginal tissue, indicating the potential to deliver RPV LA to primary sites of viral challenge and replication. This innovative research has future potential for patients and healthcare workers, particularly in low‐resource settings.

  March 6, 2019

  Microbicides, Treatment

  Advanced Healthcare Materials

• HIV-1 Remission Following Ccr5δ32/Δ32 Haematopoietic Stem-cell Transplantation

  HIV-1 cure remains elusive with only one reported case a decade ago. Termed the ‘Berlin patient’, the individual underwent two allogeneic haematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) procedures using a donor with a homozygous mutation in the HIV coreceptor CCR5 (CCR5Δ32/Δ32) to treat his acute myeloid leukaemia. Total body irradiation was given with each HSCT. Critically, it is unclear which treatment or patient parameters contributed to this only documented case of long-term HIV remission.

  March 5, 2019

  Cure

  Nature

• Impact of Myeloid Reservoirs in HIV Cure Trials

  This review will highlight new research efforts defining myeloid persistence and recent advances in HIV remission and cure trials that would be relevant in targeting this compartment and make an argument as to their clinical relevancy as we progress towards sustained ART-free HIV remission in all HIV-infected persons.

  March 5, 2019

  Cure

  Current HIV Research

• Gonorrhoea and Chlamydia Diagnosis as an Entry Point for HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis: A Modelling Study

  Targeting MSM infected with Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis (NG/CT) increases the efficiency and effectiveness of PrEP delivery. If high levels of sexually transmitted infection screening can be achieved at the community level, NG/CT diagnosis may be a highly effective entry point for PrEP initialisation.

  March 4, 2019

  PrEP

  BMJ Open

• The Effects of Free Condom Distribution on HIV and Other Sexually Transmitted Infections in Men Who Have Sex with Men

  Free condoms at public sex venues could reduce the transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. Condom distribution is an affordable and easily implemented intervention that could reduce the burden of disease in men who have sex with men substantially

  March 4, 2019

  Male and Female Condoms

  BMC Infectious Diseases

• First Impressions Matter: How Initial Worries Influence Adherence to the Dapivirine Vaginal Ring

  Although worries may be an initial deterrent to correct ring use, intervening early by leveraging social influences from peers and clinicians should facilitate successful adoption and correct ring use.

  February 27, 2019

  Microbicides

  JAIDS

• Vaccine Induction of Antibodies and Tissue-resident CD8+ T Cells Enhances Protection Against Mucosal SHIV-infection in Young Macaques

  Our results demonstrate the advantage of vaccines that induce combined CD8+ T cell and antibody responses in offering enhanced protection against mucosal challenge. We demonstrate that the potentially novel adjuvant 3M-052 can induce a high magnitude and persistent antibody responses in mucosal and systemic compartments.

  February 21, 2019

  HIV Vaccine

  JCI Insight

• Transmission Patterns in a Low HIV-Morbidity State — Wisconsin, 2014–2017

  The combination of public health interview and molecular sequence data is a powerful new tool for understanding HIV transmission networks and identifying population- or individual-level interventions to reduce HIV transmission and improve health outcomes.

  February 15, 2019

  General

  Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR)

• How Can Programmes Better Support Female Sex Workers to Avoid HIV Infection in Zimbabwe? A Prevention Cascade Analysis

  HIV prevention programming among FSW in Zimbabwe could consider increasing awareness of PrEP alongside supply, alcohol use interventions, and approaches to engaging younger women.

  February 7, 2019

  JAIDS

Announcements