HIV News and Research

RSS

Utah law requiring HIV tests for convicted sex workers, solicitors fails to slow spread of HIV because it is not enforced, editorial says

A Utah state law that requires convicted commercial sex workers and solicitors of commercial sex to be tested for HIV and makes sex work and solicitation a "felony offense for repeat offenders who were aware they had tested positive for HIV" could "deter" sex work, but it is "not happening" because the law is not enforced, a Salt Lake Tribune editorial says (Salt Lake Tribune, 5/5).

7 May 2008

Gordon Brown holds conference on role of businesses in efforts to meet MDGs

Multinational companies need to increase their efforts to address development issues worldwide, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on Tuesday ahead of a conference on global businesses and the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, AFP/Google.com reports.

7 May 2008

U.N. launches workplace HIV program

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday launched U.N. Cares, a new workplace HIV program that will provide such services as training, counseling and testing for U.N. staff and their families, Xinhua/China View reports.

7 May 2008

Scientists discover how reverse transcriptase molecules interact with the HIV genome

Using ingenious molecular espionage, scientists have found how a single key enzyme, seemingly the Swiss army knife in HIV's toolbox, differentiates and dynamically binds both DNA and RNA as part of the virus' fierce attack on host cells. The work is described this week in the journal Nature.

7 May 2008

Russia should increase HIV prevention efforts targeted at IDUs, UNAIDS Executive Director Piot says

Russia should increase efforts to address HIV/AIDS among injection drug users to slow the spread of the disease, UNAIDS Executive Director Peter Piot said on Saturday during a conference on HIV/AIDS in the former Soviet Union, Reuters reports. According to Reuters, the former Soviet Union has the third-highest number of people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide.

6 May 2008

PEPFAR reauthorization bills should address increased risk of HIV among women in Africa, editorial says

When reauthorizing the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, Congress should address the "cultural tragedy" that married women in Africa are at an increased risk of HIV, a Kansas City Star editorial says.

6 May 2008

60 Minutes profiles Partners in Health co-founder Paul Farmer

CBS' "60 Minutes" on Sunday profiled Paul Farmer, co-founder of Partners in Health, which provides no-cost medical care for people with HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and other conditions in Haiti and eight other countries worldwide

6 May 2008

Group launches program to expand role of people living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda

The International HIV/AIDS Alliance recently launched a three-year program in Uganda to expand the role of networks of HIV-positive people in an effort to improve the delivery of services and reduce stigma, Uganda's Monitor reports.

6 May 2008

Texas AG Abbott issues opinion allowing prosecution of people involved in Bexar County needle-exchange program

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott (R) on Monday issued an opinion saying that three advocates involved in an effort to launch a needle-exchange program in Bexar County, Texas, "appear to be subject to prosecution" for possession of drug paraphernalia, the Austin American-Statesman reports (MacLaggan, Austin American-Statesman, 5/6).

6 May 2008

Adult human stem cells shown not to pose a cancer risk when implanted into different organs

A new study by UC Davis researchers provides evidence that methods using human bone marrow-derived stem cells to deliver gene therapy to cure diseases of the blood, bone marrow and certain types of cancer do not cause the development of tumors or leukemia.

6 May 2008

Relief in sight for arthritis triggered by viral infections such as Ross River fever

Australian scientists believe they may have discovered the possibility of relief for those suffering with the debilitating arthritis triggered by viral infections such as Ross River fever.

6 May 2008

Better understanding of immune response to HIV infection

The "exhaustion" of immune cells that target HIV appears to result from chronic exposure to the virus, specifically exposure to the particular protein segments targeted by the pathogen-killing HIV-specific CD8 T cells.

6 May 2008

Impact of round-the-clock, rapid oral fluid HIV testing of women in labor

Can HIV transmission in pregnancy in low income settings be prevented with round the clock rapid testing in labor?

6 May 2008

New saliva-based HIV test gives results in 20 minutes!

The usual waiting period for the results of a HIV test can seem like an eternity, especially in emergency situations where results are needed immediately. Also it requires a blood sample, which is invasive and often painful. Recognizing the urgent need for a faster and less invasive diagnostic method, Dr. Nitika Pant Pai, from Marina Klein's research team at the MUHC has just finished testing a new saliva-based test that gives results in approximately 20 minutes! She describes her findings in an article that will appear in the May 6th, 2008 issue of PLoS Medicine.

6 May 2008

HIV/AIDS cases decline in Malawi; testing, counseling sites increase, health official says

HIV prevalence among people ages 15 to 49 in Malawi declined to 12% in 2007, and there are now 410 sites offering HIV testing and counseling, National AIDS Commission Board Chair Nicholas Chitimba said recently, Malawi's National News reports.

6 May 2008

More women than men sought services at Uganda's AIDS support organization in 2007

More women than men in Uganda sought services of the AIDS Support Organization, or TASO, according to a recently released TASO report, Uganda's Weekly Observer reports. TASO provides HIV testing and counseling, as well as antiretroviral drugs and other HIV/AIDS-related services.

6 May 2008

Rate of voluntary HIV testing unchanged in Singapore despite expanded access to rapid HIV tests

The number of people who voluntarily took HIV tests in Singapore in 2007 did not improve despite increased access of rapid HIV testing kits to more than 60 clinics, Singapore's Today reports.

5 May 2008

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette profiles founder of Children Affected by AIDS Foundation

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Thursday profiled Joe Cristina, founder of the Los Angeles-based Children Affected by AIDS Foundation. According to the Post-Gazette, Cristina founded CAAF in 1993 with the support of the toy company Mattel, where he was an executive, as a way to "channel" the "energy and support" he received after being diagnosed with HIV.

5 May 2008

New York lawmakers, HIV/AIDS advocates working to address HIV/AIDS funds for counties

New York state lawmakers and HIV/AIDS advocates are working to address federal HIV/AIDS funding for Nassau and Suffolk counties following a recent ruling that HHS should restore more than $1 million in Ryan White Program funding, the New York Times reports (Saslow, New York Times, 5/4).

5 May 2008

Anti-HIV NanoViricide drug candidate shows promise in animal trials

NanoViricides, Inc said that its anti-HIV drug candidates demonstrated significant therapeutic efficacy in the recently completed preliminary animal studies.

5 May 2008

HIV News and Research

Utah law requiring HIV tests for convicted sex workers, solicitors fails to slow spread of HIV because it is not enforced, editorial says

Gordon Brown holds conference on role of businesses in efforts to meet MDGs

U.N. launches workplace HIV program

Scientists discover how reverse transcriptase molecules interact with the HIV genome

Russia should increase HIV prevention efforts targeted at IDUs, UNAIDS Executive Director Piot says

PEPFAR reauthorization bills should address increased risk of HIV among women in Africa, editorial says

60 Minutes profiles Partners in Health co-founder Paul Farmer

Group launches program to expand role of people living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda

Texas AG Abbott issues opinion allowing prosecution of people involved in Bexar County needle-exchange program

Adult human stem cells shown not to pose a cancer risk when implanted into different organs

Relief in sight for arthritis triggered by viral infections such as Ross River fever

Better understanding of immune response to HIV infection

Impact of round-the-clock, rapid oral fluid HIV testing of women in labor

New saliva-based HIV test gives results in 20 minutes!

HIV/AIDS cases decline in Malawi; testing, counseling sites increase, health official says

More women than men sought services at Uganda's AIDS support organization in 2007

Rate of voluntary HIV testing unchanged in Singapore despite expanded access to rapid HIV tests

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette profiles founder of Children Affected by AIDS Foundation

New York lawmakers, HIV/AIDS advocates working to address HIV/AIDS funds for counties

Anti-HIV NanoViricide drug candidate shows promise in animal trials

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

Latest News