HIV/AIDS News and Research

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Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

New HIV/AIDS initiative in Tanzania aims to increase condom availability

Condom vending machines will be unveiled on Monday in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, as part of a six-year pilot HIV prevention initiative in the country, Tanzania's The Citizen reports.

18 May 2009

Denver Post examines efforts to establish needle-exchange programs in Colorado

The Denver Post on Friday examined efforts to establish needle-exchange programs in Colorado to reduce the risk of HIV and hepatitis C among injection drug users.

18 May 2009

Vaccine candidate successful in blocking Simian version of HIV

Researchers have successfully blocked SIV, the simian version of HIV, using a new technique that could help lead to the development of an effective HIV/AIDS vaccine, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. The team also included scientists from Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and the New England Primate Research Center in Boston.

18 May 2009

Computer simulation captures immune response to flu

Researchers have successfully tested first the first time a computer simulation of major portions of the body's immune reaction to influenza type A, with implications for treatment design and preparation ahead of future pandemics, according to work accepted for publication, and posted online, by the Journal of Virology.

18 May 2009

Piecing together the HIV prevention puzzle

"It's an exciting time in HIV prevention research. We will see results from a number of critically important HIV prevention research trials this year, as well as see the start of new trials around the world that will yield important answers in the years to come," said Mitchell Warren, AVAC executive director, at the release of AVAC's 13th annual report of the field.

18 May 2009

Urgent need for stringent TB screening policies among South African healthcare workers

Healthcare workers in South Africa are at a significantly increased risk of developing drug-resistant tuberculosis, or XDR-TB, in a trend which threatens to further exacerbate the already beleaguered healthcare systems in sub-Saharan countries, according to results of a new study.

17 May 2009

Gene transfer technology may lead to an HIV vaccine

A research team may have broken the stubborn impasse that has frustrated the invention of an effective HIV vaccine, by using an approach that bypasses the usual path followed by vaccine developers.

17 May 2009

Early retroviral use best for AIDS patients with serious complications

HIV-positive patients who don't seek medical attention until they have a serious AIDS-related condition can reduce their risk of death or other complications by half if they get antiretroviral treatment early on, according to a new multicenter trial led by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

17 May 2009

Early use of antiretroviral treatment improves survival rate of HIV patients

A clinical study, led by researchers from University College Dublin, Ireland, and Stanford University, California, USA, with international collaborators, demonstrates that mortality rates of HIV patients can be almost halved when early antiretroviral (ARV) therapy is added to the treatment of AIDS-related opportunistic infections (OIs) such as pneumonia, meningitis or other serious bacterial infections.

17 May 2009

Rates of sexually transmitted infections in Allegheny County, Pa., disproportionately high among blacks, officials say

Health officials in Allegheny County, Pa., on Wednesday held a sexually transmitted infection diversity conference to discuss the disproportionately higher STI rates among blacks and strategies to reduce them, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

15 May 2009

Washington State drops budget provision that would have cut Medicaid pharmacy payments

Washington state lawmakers this week eliminated a budgetary proposal that would have reduced Medicaid payment rates to pharmacies to the lowest levels in the country, the AP/Spokane Spokesman-Review reports.

15 May 2009

Sexual violence aimed at girls, women in Swaziland linked to high HIV/AIDS risk, other health issues

A new report commissioned by UNICEF and CDC and recently published in the journal Lancet found that one in three girls in Swaziland has experienced sexual violence by age 18, which can lead to serious health issues such as HIV, IRIN/PlusNews reports.

15 May 2009

Public hearing examines issues faced by children in Thailand, including HIV/AIDS, lack of sex education

Thailand's Office of Welfare Promotion, Protection and Empowerment of Vulnerable People earlier this week held a public hearing to discuss various risks facing the country's children, including HIV/AIDS, Thailand's The Nation reports. The office plans to present a draft report on the state of child rights in the country.

15 May 2009

Lambda Legal files suit against assisted-living facility for allegedly discriminating against HIV-positive resident

Lambda Legal, a group that represents HIV-positive people, on Tuesday filed a law suit against the Fox Ridge assisted-living facility in North Little Rock, Ark., for allegedly evicting a resident because he is HIV-positive, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports.

15 May 2009

New Jersey Senator proposes plan to avert HIV/AIDS drug copayments

New Jersey state Sen. Joseph Vitale (D) -- chair of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee -- earlier this week proposed a plan to temporarily reduce rebate checks to senior citizens earning $100,000 to $150,000 in an effort to alleviate the effects of possible budget cuts on certain populations, the Newark Star-Ledger reports. Vitale's proposal also would avert planned $6 to $15 prescription drug copayments for people living with HIV/AIDS in the state (Livio, Newark Star-Ledger, 5/12).

15 May 2009

PIH founder Farmer discussing possible appointment to coordinate U.S. global health initiatives, Boston Globe reports

Paul Farmer -- founder of Partners in Health and vice chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School -- said he is in discussions with the State Department about a possible Obama administration appointment to coordinate U.S. global health initiatives, the Boston Globe reports. Farmer made the announcement Monday during a meeting with HMS faculty.

15 May 2009

Obama names New York City Health Commissioner Frieden next CDC Director, New York Times reports

President Obama on Friday named New York City Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden as the next CDC director, the New York Times reports. It has long been expected that Obama would select Frieden, an infectious disease specialist, according to the Times.

15 May 2009

Chronic infection clearly linked to key immunity protein

The reason deadly infections like human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C never go away is because these viruses disarm the body's defense system.

15 May 2009

Herpes drug Acyclovir does not reduce risk of HIV transmission, does slow HIV progression, study says

The drug acyclovir, which suppresses herpes simplex virus-2, does not reduce the risk of HIV transmission when taken by HIV-positive people who also have herpes, according to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Washington, United Press International reports.

14 May 2009

Vietnamese HIV/AIDS Department announces funding for prevention efforts

Vietnamese officials announced recently that about 678 billion dong, or about $38.7 million, will be allocated for HIV/AIDS prevention efforts in the country in 2009, the VNA/VietnamPlus.com reports.

14 May 2009

HIV/AIDS News and Research

Further Reading

New HIV/AIDS initiative in Tanzania aims to increase condom availability

Denver Post examines efforts to establish needle-exchange programs in Colorado

Vaccine candidate successful in blocking Simian version of HIV

Computer simulation captures immune response to flu

Piecing together the HIV prevention puzzle

Urgent need for stringent TB screening policies among South African healthcare workers

Gene transfer technology may lead to an HIV vaccine

Early retroviral use best for AIDS patients with serious complications

Early use of antiretroviral treatment improves survival rate of HIV patients

Rates of sexually transmitted infections in Allegheny County, Pa., disproportionately high among blacks, officials say

Washington State drops budget provision that would have cut Medicaid pharmacy payments

Sexual violence aimed at girls, women in Swaziland linked to high HIV/AIDS risk, other health issues

Public hearing examines issues faced by children in Thailand, including HIV/AIDS, lack of sex education

Lambda Legal files suit against assisted-living facility for allegedly discriminating against HIV-positive resident

New Jersey Senator proposes plan to avert HIV/AIDS drug copayments

PIH founder Farmer discussing possible appointment to coordinate U.S. global health initiatives, Boston Globe reports

Obama names New York City Health Commissioner Frieden next CDC Director, New York Times reports

Chronic infection clearly linked to key immunity protein

Herpes drug Acyclovir does not reduce risk of HIV transmission, does slow HIV progression, study says

Vietnamese HIV/AIDS Department announces funding for prevention efforts

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

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