An experimental HIV entry inhibitor might be particularly well suited for use as a preventive microbicide—due to the area of the virus it targets and its potential to avoid being quickly broken down by the body. Scientists announced their findings about the drug, which is still in early development, on August 18 in an online article in the journal Virology.
Encouraging HIV prevention news was recently shared at the International AIDS Conference in Vienna, where researchers reported a study involving a microbicidal tenofovir gel that protected nearly 40 percent of females users it from HIV infection. In women who used the gel most frequently, the protective effect exceeded 50 percent.
There is a downside to the tenofovir gel, however. T Read more…
Researchers report that they have taken the first step toward killing cells that are latently infected with HIV—cells that serve as a reservoir of persistent HIV reproduction and that current antiretroviral (ARV) drugs can’t reach. Their findings have been accepted by the open-access journal AIDS Research and Therapy.
Combination ARV therapy is incredibly potent. Numerous studies have shown that the therapies in widest use today can shut down all but the tiniest level of residual reproduction. However, the miniscule amount of HIV that remains—in CD4 cells that are essentially shut off, or latent—can completely reseed the body with virus as soon as a person stops taking his or her ARV therapy.
Those cells have snippets of HIV DNA integrated into their own DNA, but they aren’t actively making new virus. Unfortuna Read more…
The trial of No Angels singer, Nadja Benaissa, began this week and has already received worldwide media attention. It highlights what experts working in HIV prevention, treatment and care have long argued: that laws and prosecutions as a result of non-disclosure of HIV-positive status are ineffectual, counterproductive and unjust.
People with HIV around the world – including Benaissa – are being scapegoated for our collective failure in preventing new HIV infections. Mor
This study investigated the relationship between highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) among two clinical cohorts in South Africa. Between 2003 and 2008 structured questionnaires were administered to HIV-positive patients attending outpatient clinics at an urban hospital (Soweto, n = 3,081) and a rural hospital (Acornhoek, n = 1,247). Among those receiving help, an average of 4.8 and 5.1 h of assistance with IADLs daily was reported (rural and urban participants, respectively), with the patient’s mother and children assisting the most. Participants on HAART were 17 and 41% less likely to receive assistance with IADLs in the rural and urban cohorts, respectively, after adjusting for demographic characteristics, healthcare utilization, and CD4 counts. HAART Read more…
