HIV 1 News and Research

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New testing technologies can help fight TB, but new treatments needed

"[F]or many low-income populations, [tuberculosis (TB)] is nothing less than a modern-day public health emergency," and "[t]o make things worse, many of these patients [a]re living with HIV," U.N. Under-Secretary General and UNITAID Chair Philippe Douste-Blazy writes in a Huffington Post "Impact" blog opinion piece.

22 Mar 2013

Male circumcision a 'staggeringly under-utilized tool'

"PrePex, the new nonsurgical circumcision tool experts believe could revolutionize the prevention of HIV and AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, is easier to assemble than a toy you might find in a Happy Meal," freelance journalist Patrick Adams writes in the New York Times' "Opinionator" blog.

22 Mar 2013

Researchers develop new approach for HIV vaccine development

Decades of research and three large-scale clinical trials have so far failed to yield an effective HIV vaccine, in large part because the virus evolves so rapidly that it can evade any vaccine-induced immune response.

22 Mar 2013

Cocaine can be lethal for people living with HIV

Cocaine, already a damaging drug for those with healthy immune systems, can be lethal for those living with human immunodeficiency virus. Mudit Tyagi, Ph.D., assistant professor of medicine at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, has received two federally funded grants to study how dangerous this combination is in HIV patients.

22 Mar 2013

HIV home tests: an interview with Dr Nitika Pant Pai, McGill University

30 years into the HIV epidemic, there is no vaccine in sight. Yet, even though there are fantastic and effective cheap and universally available drugs, and a treatment as prevention strategy is known to work, people do not wish to get tested for HIV! If everyone got tested, and treated, we could have brought the infection under control a long time ago!

21 Mar 2013

More action needed to fight TB, as drug resistance spreading

"As we mark World [Tuberculosis (TB)] Day on Sunday March 24, there can be no denying that TB, fueled by drug resistance, continues to pose a serious global health threat -- one that must be urgently addressed," John Lechleiter, chair, president and CEO of Eli Lilly and Company and chair of the board of PhRMA, writes in a Forbes opinion piece, adding, "With resistance spreading, we need a renewed global commitment that combines public and private efforts to defeat TB."

21 Mar 2013

Hepatitis C and HIV co-infection treatment: an interview with Prof Boecher, Boehringer Ingelheim

Chronic hepatitis C infection is one of the most frequent chronic infectious diseases worldwide. The WHO estimates that 150 million people worldwide are chronically infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV).

20 Mar 2013

Mozambique completes first HIV vaccine clinical trial

Last week, "researchers at Mozambique's Polana Cancio Centre for Research and Public Health completed a trial evaluating the safety of an HIV vaccine candidate," the country's "first HIV vaccine trial," and it "is set to embark on a second, a demonstration of the country's increased HIV research capacity," PlusNews reports.

20 Mar 2013

HIV treatment should be started earlier for most, but challenges remain

Noting "French researchers have identified 14 adults" who appear to have been functionally cured of HIV after beginning treatment "within a couple of months of infection" and continuing treatment "for one to seven and a half years" before stopping, a New York Times editorial writes, "The researchers estimate that as many as 15 percent of adults who start treatment early and continue for at least a year may then be able to stop their drug regimen and live healthily without the drugs."

20 Mar 2013

New Alzheimer's data highlight the disease's deadly toll

According to figures released by the Alzheimer's Association, deaths from Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia rose 68 percent between 2000 and 2010.

20 Mar 2013

Viewpoints: Protect the FDA's regulatory efforts; Generic drug 'shenanigans;' Does Ryan not understand the 2012 election?

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court will hear arguments in Mutual Pharmaceutical v. Bartlett, a case about the ability of consumers to bring lawsuits against the makers of generic drugs.

20 Mar 2013

Federal government may need to enforce health law in some states

Politico reports that insurance officials in at least four states won't implement insurance market changes that are part of the law, leaving that task to federal officials. Meanwhile, the Obama administration offers new rules and statistics related to implementation.

20 Mar 2013

Hepatitis C virus rarely transmitted through sex between monogamous heterosexuals

Individuals infected by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) have nothing to fear from sex in a monogamous, heterosexual relationship. Transmission of HCV from an infected partner during sex is rare according to new research published in the March issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD).

19 Mar 2013

New report shows Alzheimer's deaths continue to rise in US

According to the Alzheimer's Association 2013 Alzheimer's Disease Facts & Figures report released today, one in three seniors dies with Alzheimer's or another dementia in the United States.

19 Mar 2013

First Edition: March 19, 2013

Today's headlines include coverage of a new report about the troubling reach of Alzheimer's disease.

19 Mar 2013

Blog examines new data on global burden of disease

"The Seattle-based Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation recently published the most recent global estimates of disease burden that update the leading causes of death and disability across the world," Todd Summers, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic & International Studies Global Health Policy Center, writes in the center's "Smart Global Health" blog.

19 Mar 2013

CIHR, CMAJ honour five Canadians for health research excellence

The Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Canadian Medical Association Journal today honoured five outstanding Canadian individuals and teams. They are the latest recipients of the CIHR-CMAJ Top Canadian Achievements in Health Research Awards, which celebrate Canadian health research excellence.

19 Mar 2013

Study shows widespread use of antiretroviral drugs would increase prevalence of MDR HIV

One of the most widely advocated strategies for dealing with HIV/AIDS could double the number of multi-drug-resistant HIV cases in the population of men who have sex with men in LA County over the next 10 years, cautions a new study.

19 Mar 2013

USAID's pursuit of evidence-based global health agenda

As part of the Global Health Research & Development blog series, E. Callie Raulfs-Wang, research adviser at USAID's Center for Accelerating Innovation and Impact, writes in the agency's "IMPACTblog," "Whether testing the efficacy of an HIV vaccine or the marketing strategy of a new contraceptive technology, quality research, careful methodology and rigorous analysis are fundamental for acquiring evidence useful in decision-making."

16 Mar 2013

Small percentage of adults who receive rapid HIV treatment following infection might achieve 'functional cure,' French researchers say

"Rapid treatment after HIV infection may be enough to 'functionally cure' about a 10th of those diagnosed early, say researchers in France," who "have been analyzing 14 people who stopped therapy, but have since shown no signs of the virus resurging," BBC News reports (Gallagher, 3/15).

16 Mar 2013