via PLoS Medicine, by Gordon Mansergh, Beryl A. Koblin, Patrick S. Sullivan Summary Points: Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) with anti-retroviral (ARV) medications is partially efficacious for preventing HIV infection among men who have sex with men (MSM) and heterosexuals. As PrEP becomes available and prescribed for use among MSM a better understanding of willingness to use PrEP and Read More >>

via IRMA/AVAC, presented by Jim A. Turpin Please register for this teleconference.  Meeting Description: In the last two years there has been great progress in ARV-based prevention strategies – both in terms of PrEP and microbicides. Specifically, there has been enormous excitement and promise around two drugs – tenofovir and Truvada. And more recently, studies testing Dapivirine Read More >>

The teleconference I am referring to – “And in the beginning, there were Rectal Microbicides” – was held last Thursday. The slides and call recording are available now. It was a really interesting call – with LOTS of great questions from the participants. Thanks to everyone who made it so dynamic – including presenter Ian McGowan and Read More >>

via mg.co.za, by Mia Malan South African guidelines for the preventative use of HIV medication by men who have sex with men who are not infected with the virus are to be published in the peer-reviewed academic publication, Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine, this month. The treatment, pre-exposure prophylaxis (Prep), consists of an antiretroviral (ARV) pill Read More >>

via Lancet.com, by Salim S Abdool Karim  and Quarraisha Abdool Karim On May 10, 2012, a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee voted in support of the use of tenofovir-emtricitabine for HIV prevention.1 If the FDA, which is scheduled to make its decision by June 15, adopts the committee’s recommendations, tenofovir-emtricitabine will become the first Read More >>

via California HIV/AIDS Research Program In April 2012, the California HIV/AIDS Research Program (CHRP) of the University of California awarded grants totaling $11.8 million to three collaborative teams of investigators to test a potential HIV prevention medication among high-risk HIV-uninfected persons in several communities throughout California. The studies also will examine new strategies to engage and retain Read More >>

via AIDSmeds, by Tim Horn Excerpt: A key question from HPTN 052 is whether the results can be generalized to other contexts, Cohen and his colleagues explain. Examples include heterosexual couples with CD4 counts lower and higher than those studied in HPTN 052; high-risk heterosexual individuals, notably sex workers and their clients; men who have sex with Read More >>

AVAC is pleased today to launch the Research Literacy Database at www.avac.org/researchliteracy, an important new resource for the biomedical HIV prevention field. The Research Literacy Database is the first central portal for educational resources on biomedical HIV prevention including: • Global and country-specific materials; • Resources specific to given prevention interventions including AIDS vaccines, ARV-based prevention and Read More >>

via Treatment Issues, by Deirdre Grant More than a decade ago, “AIDS Drugs for Africa” was one of the rallying cries for a global activist movement.The meaning was simple: treat HIV-positive people with potent, life-saving medications regardless of where they live, how much money they have or who they love. These days, the phrase has more meanings Read More >>

via MedPage Today, by Michael Smith Giving anti-retroviral drugs to HIV-negative people can reduce their risk of acquiring the virus from an HIV-positive partner, a researcher said here. In a large randomized controlled trial in Africa, this type of pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, cut the risk of infection by up to 75% compared with placebo, according to Read More >>