Pre Exposure Prophylaxis News and Research

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Tenofovir gel may help reduce risk of HIV from anal sex

A gel developed to protect against HIV during vaginal sex produced a strong antiviral effect when used in the rectum, according to an early-phase study presented today at the 18th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI). The results, based on rectal tissue biopsies sampled from HIV-negative men and women who used the product daily for one week, provide the first-ever evidence that tenofovir gel could help reduce the risk of HIV from anal sex, even though the vaginal gel formulation may not be optimal for rectal use.

28 Feb 2011

U.S., South Africa sign PEPFAR partnership agreement

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and South African International Relations and Cooperation Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane on Tuesday signed a "partnership agreement that will guide efforts on fighting HIV/AIDS in the African nation," Bloomberg BusinessWeek reports (Wessels, 12/15).

17 Dec 2010

HIV prevention programs worldwide are missing MSMs, survey finds

An online survey of men who have sex with men and their health service providers shows that the majority of respondents said most "gay men worldwide don't have access to HIV testing, counseling or free condoms and lubricant, a new study finds," according to a report by the Global Forum on MSM & HIV, HealthDay/Businessweek reports.

4 Dec 2010

Opinions: Obama's Global Fund pledge; harm reduction in Iran; HIV prevention; African development

There are some encouraging signs in the epic battle against AIDS and HIV infections. But those bright spots dim considerably in the face of the fact that about 7,100 people a day become infected.

30 Nov 2010

To reduce spread of HIV/AIDS, IFRC calls for more focus on IDU programs

Ahead of World AIDS Day, the International Federation of the Red Cross on Friday released a report (.pdf) calling for governments around the world to do more to help stop the spread of HIV/AIDS among populations of injecting drug users (IDUs), the Associated Press reports (Heilprin, 11/25).

30 Nov 2010

Media outlets continue to follow major HIV/AIDS developments this week

Media outlets continued to track the major developments in HIV/AIDS this week, including: prevention research using an antiretroviral; new UNAIDS estimates of HIV/AIDS around the world; and Pope Benedict XVI's stance on condoms for HIV prevention.

25 Nov 2010

FTC/TDF tablet reduces HIV infection among high-risk individuals: iPrEx study

In a finding with the potential to fundamentally change strategies to slow the global HIV epidemic, a new study called iPrEx shows that individuals at high risk for HIV infection who took a single daily tablet containing two widely used HIV medications, emtricitabine and tenofovir (FTC/TDF), experienced an average of 43.8% fewer HIV infections than those who received a placebo pill. New England Journal of Medicine, is the first evidence that this new HIV prevention method, called pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP, reduces HIV infection risk in people.

24 Nov 2010

GCM supports iPrEx Study to prevent HIV infection among MSM

The Global Campaign for Microbicides (GCM) welcomes today's news from the Division of AIDS (DAIDS) of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Gladstone Institutes of the University of California, San Francisco that daily use of oral emtricitabine (FTC) with tenofovir (TDF) in one tablet shows promise to safely and effectively help to prevent HIV infection among men who have sex with men (MSM).

24 Nov 2010

Important queries about PrEP, iPrEx trial for HIV infection

The results of the iPrEx PrEP effectiveness trial of once-daily TDF/FTC (brand name Truvada) in gay men, transgender women and other men who have sex with men are a landmark in HIV prevention research.

24 Nov 2010

HIV treatment drugs also help prevent HIV infection in high-risk men: Study

In a significant advance for HIV prevention research, a clinical trial confirms that the same drugs used for treating HIV can also help prevent HIV infection in the first place.

24 Nov 2010

iPrEx study: PrEP reduces HIV infection risk among gay, bisexual men

A daily dose of an oral antiretroviral drug, currently approved to treat HIV infection, reduced the risk of acquiring HIV infection by 43.8 percent among men who have sex with men.

24 Nov 2010

iPrEx trial shows reduction in new HIV infections

Results of the world's first efficacy trial of an HIV-prevention approach called oral pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, were released online in the New England Journal of Medicine today.

24 Nov 2010

iPrEx oral PrEP study achieves major milestone in HIV prevention research

This is a great day in the fight against AIDS. The positive results of the iPrEx oral PrEP study are a major milestone in HIV prevention research and provide important information about how antiretroviral drugs might be used for prevention by HIV-negative people at high risk for HIV infection, said AVAC Executive Director Mitchell Warren.

24 Nov 2010

Daily oral antiretroviral reduces HIV infection risk in MSM by 44%, study finds

A study that included nearly 2,500 HIV-negative men and transgender women who have sex with men has shown that a daily dose of Truvada, a pill containing the AIDS drugs emtricitabine and tenofovir, "can reduce risk of contracting [HIV] by an average of 44% - and by more than 70% if the subjects" follow the regimen closely, Los Angeles Times reports (Maugh, 11/23).

24 Nov 2010

CONRAD congratulates Global iPrEx study team for HIV prevention trial

CONRAD is pleased to join in congratulating the Global iPrEx study team for their successful trial of oral tenofovir (TDF) with emtricitabine (FTC) for HIV prevention.

24 Nov 2010

New York Times examines HIV prevention products undergoing clinical trials

The New York Times examines several products being studied in clinical trials that researchers hope will one day prevent sexual transmission of HIV. The newspaper describes the ongoing trials of a vaginal microbicide gel containing the antiretroviral tenofovir which was found to reduce the risk of HIV infection in women by 39 percent, writing, "[o]ther clinical trials will report their results in 2011 and 2012 and, if all goes well, researchers hope to have a product or two ready to enter the market by 2013."

10 Nov 2010

CQ Healthbeat examines HIV prevention research funding

The global economy has affected HIV/AIDS prevention research, so "scientists and those who fund them are struggling to set priorities among several competing research methods that could slow the spread of the disease, which causes about 2.7 million new infections worldwide a year," CQ HealthBeat reports.

8 Oct 2010

Onconova Therapeutics to present Ex-RAD radioprotectant data at RRS Annual Meeting

Onconova Therapeutics, Inc. is presenting new data in five posters and an oral presentation this week summarizing several studies with the company's radioprotectant Ex-RAD- at the 56th Annual Meeting of the Radiation Research Society (RRS), September 25-29 in Maui, Hawaii.

28 Sep 2010

AVAC welcomes new Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise Scientific Strategic Plan

AVAC welcomes the new Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise Scientific Strategic Plan, released today, as a critical document that the field must implement as part of ongoing efforts to improve coordination, efficiency and transparency to quickly capitalize on recent advances in AIDS vaccine research.

8 Sep 2010

AIDS 2010: Obama, Clinton vow U.S. support to global fight against HIV/AIDS

During the closing ceremonies of the International AIDS Conference-AIDS 2010, President Barack Obama "on Friday pledged to redouble efforts to fight HIV and AIDS through his Global Health Initiative, despite dealing with economic hard times in the wake of a global recession," Reuters reports. According to the news service, "Obama and his Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said their focus was on a broad, sustainable and effective approach to the global epidemic" (Kelland, 7/23).

26 Jul 2010