[Viva] Fwd: Encouraging vaccine news – HIV update, 2 September 2014

Tue Sep 2 10:41:26 PDT 2014

Looks promising!
M

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From: HIV Update <bulletins at bulletins.aidsmap.com>
Date: Tue, Sep 2, 2014 at 2:41 AM
Subject: Encouraging vaccine news – HIV update, 2 September 2014
To: margaritesanchez at gmail.com

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02 September 2014

   - Encouraging vaccine news <#14835bd9a939838f_item2903597>
   - Talking about HIV status before having a baby
   <#14835bd9a939838f_item2903601>
   - Editors' picks from other sources <#14835bd9a939838f_item2903602>

<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/1036964/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>

 Encouraging vaccine news

A relatively simple vaccine that works in an unusual way has managed to
completely block infection with SIV
<http://www.aidsmap.com/Novel-immune-suppressant-vaccine-completely-blocks-HIV-infection-in-monkeys-human-trials-planned/page/2902377/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>,
the monkey equivalent of HIV, in monkeys. This finding gives new hopes for
the development of a vaccine which could prevent HIV infection.

But the research is also encouraging in terms of a vaccine for people who
have already acquired HIV – in other words, a therapeutic vaccine to
suppress the replication of HIV. When the vaccine was given to monkeys who
were previously infected with SIV, their viral load was rapidly suppressed.

The vaccine works in a very different way to other HIV vaccines
<http://www.aidsmap.com/Vaccines/page/1065617/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
that have been tested. The French and Chinese scientists who developed it
were themselves surprised by the positive results of their unconventional
approach. They say the results suggest a new approach for developing an HIV
vaccine in humans.

The vaccine appears to work by stimulating the production of a previously
unknown group of CD8 T-cells that stopped the monkeys’ CD4 cells from
recognising SIV as a foreign invader, thereby preventing an immune response
to SIV. This suppressant effect means that the SIV is deprived of the
SIV-specific immune-activated CD4 cells it needs in order to proliferate
and establish an infection in the body.

The vaccine consisted of inactivated SIV administered alongside doses of
bacteria that are already familiar to scientists – either BCG, an
anti-tuberculosis vaccine or gut bacteria that are used in probiotic
supplements.

Although the study is small, involving a few dozen animals, around half of
those vaccinated were completely protected from infection, while some
others were infected but soon had an undetectable viral load
<http://www.aidsmap.com/Viral-load/page/1327496/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>.
In contrast, all monkeys that were not vaccinated were infected.

Other scientists should now check that they get the same results when using
the same technique. But it remains to be seen whether the approach will
work in humans – previous HIV vaccines have looked promising in animal
studies but have failed to work in humans.

As a first step to finding out, two safety trials are planned in humans. In
one, HIV-negative volunteers at low risk of HIV will be given the vaccine
to see if it stimulates the same immune- and virus-suppressant responses.
In the other, HIV-positive volunteers on fully suppressive HIV treatment
will be given the vaccine and then taken off treatment six months later if
test tube results suggest the vaccine has produced such responses.

*If you are interested in taking part in vaccine trials in the UK, or
encouraging people in your networks to find out about volunteering for
trials, visit the Help make history website
<https://www.helpmakehistory.mrc.ac.uk/>. It has information on HIV vaccine
trials that are currently recruiting participants, and you can register
your interest in future trials.*

 Talking about HIV status before having a baby

A study in South Africa
<http://www.aidsmap.com/Poor-knowledge-of-partner-HIV-status-among-South-African-women-with-recent-pregnancy/page/2902438/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
has found that over 40% of women who had recently been pregnant and a third
of men whose partner had been pregnant did not know what their partner’s
HIV status was. The respondents included both HIV-positive people who did
not know whether their partner also had HIV, and HIV-negative people whose
partners could have been living with HIV.

People living with HIV who are married or have a long-term sexual partner
sometimes think that their partner will inevitably also have HIV. However,
this is not necessarily the case – many partners remain HIV negative, for a
period of time at least. The only way to be sure of your partner’s status
is through HIV testing
<http://www.aidsmap.com/HIV-testing/cat/1471/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
.

When a couple knows that they have different HIV statuses
<http://www.aidsmap.com/resources/living-with-hiv/Having-a-relationship-with-an-HIV-negative-partner/page/1332355/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>,
they can take steps to avoid HIV transmission within the couple. This could
include using condoms
<http://www.aidsmap.com/Condoms/page/1044833/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>,
taking pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)
<http://www.aidsmap.com/PrEP/cat/1623/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
and taking HIV treatment
<http://www.aidsmap.com/HIV-treatment-and-sexual-transmission/page/1044617/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
.

And if they would like to have a child they can also take steps to become
pregnant and give birth
<http://www.aidsmap.com/Pregnancy-and-birth/page/1550310/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>,
without either the baby or the partner acquiring HIV. But to benefit from
these measures, individuals need to be aware of their own HIV status and
that of their partner.

The researchers were especially interested in whether people had discussed
HIV status before becoming pregnant. They say that more needs to be done to
help couples with HIV testing and disclosure
<http://www.aidsmap.com/resources/living-with-hiv/Telling-people-you-have-HIV/page/1254853/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
.

*NAM has created an interactive tool for women*
<http://www.aidsmap.com/resources/apps/HIV-pregnancy/page/2648615/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>*
which provides information on pregnancy and having a baby. For women who
are not pregnant yet, there is detailed information on the safest ways to
become pregnant. The information is personalised to your situation,
including your partner’s HIV status. The tool can be used both by women
living with HIV and by HIV-negative women who have HIV-positive male
partners. The tool is available on a computer or a smartphone by visiting
www.aidsmap.com/pregnancy
<http://www.aidsmap.com/pregnancy?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>*
 Editors' picks from other sources
Zambia: PMTCT real life story
<http://www.aidsmap.com/Aggregator.ashx?type=bulletin&url=http%3a%2f%2fallafrica.com%2fstories%2f201408210164.html&utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>

from Times of Zambia

The pain of living through the loss of three children was enough to
discourage Constance Mudenda from ever contemplating parenting. When she
was pregnant, her greatest desire was to have a child born free of HIV, and
now she will continue to mentor her daughter to ensure she is protected
from acquiring HIV.
Gay social networking app *Hornet* helps users find HIV clinics
<http://www.aidsmap.com/Aggregator.ashx?type=bulletin&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.towleroad.com%2f2014%2f08%2fhornet-social-networking-app-helps-users-find-hiv-clinics.html&utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>

from Towleroad

*Hornet* will provide users with the ability to designate their HIV status,
as a part of its *Know Your Status* campaign. Once a user designates the
date of their last HIV test, the application will automatically remind them
to get tested again after a designated amount of time.

 HIV & women booklet
<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/1550301/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/1550301/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>

We have recently published a new edition of the *HIV & women *
<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/1550301/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
booklet
<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/1550301/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
in our HIV information series.

It covers key topics which can help you think about what you want to
discuss with your doctor, nurse or the people who support you.

Find out more in the NAM blog
<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/2900475/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
 AIDS 2014
<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/2866765/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/2866765/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>

NAM is the official provider of online scientific news coverage for the 20th
International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2014)
<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/2866765/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>.
The conference was held in Melbourne, Australia, 20-25 July 2014.

You can find all our conference coverage at www.aidsmap.com/aids2014
<http://www.aidsmap.com/page/2866765/?utm_source=NAM-Email-Promotion&utm_medium=hiv-update&utm_campaign=hiv-update>
 UK survey: HIV cure research
<http://snapsurvey.phe.org.uk/snapwebhost/s.asp?k=140209446073>
<http://snapsurvey.phe.org.uk/snapwebhost/s.asp?k=140209446073>

Public Health England (PHE), the British HIV Association (BHIVA) and the
National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) have put together a survey
for people living with HIV in the UK.

It aims to find out your views on HIV cure research; whether you might take
part in studies related to HIV cure research and under what circumstances.

Visit the online survey >>
<http://snapsurvey.phe.org.uk/snapwebhost/s.asp?k=140209446073>
 Hepatitis C treatment factsheets
<http://www.infohep.org/New-Hepatitis-C-treatment-factsheets-telaprevir-boceprevir-and-sofosbuvir/page/2856434/>
<http://www.infohep.org/New-Hepatitis-C-treatment-factsheets-telaprevir-boceprevir-and-sofosbuvir/page/2856434/>

We are working in partnership with the European Liver Patients Association
(ELPA) <http://www.infohep.org/page/2626329/> to provide access to
accurate, clear information to support patient advocates and people working
in hepatitis in Europe.

We recently published three hepatitis C treatment factsheets, on telaprevir
<http://www.infohep.org/Hepatitis-C-treatment-factsheet-Telaprevir-iIncivoi/page/2844968/>,
boceprevir
<http://www.infohep.org/Hepatitis-C-treatment-factsheet-Boceprevir-iVictrelisi/page/2845312/>
and sofosbuvir
<http://www.infohep.org/Hepatitis-C-treatment-factsheet-Sofosbuvir-iSovaldii/page/2845322/>,
which you can read online or download as PDFs.

Find out more on the infohep.org noticeboard
<http://www.infohep.org/New-Hepatitis-C-treatment-factsheets-telaprevir-boceprevir-and-sofosbuvir/page/2856434/>
.
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