 Hi everyone, I'm Raif Derrazy, and this is another weekly roundup of the latest HIV news for the week of August 14th to August 20th. Today I'll be going through 11 articles covering topics ranging from an update related to the EBT-101 HIV cure research, links between HIV and neurodegeneration, long-term HIV survivors fighting for their lives again, success and peer-to-peer approach for PrEP uptake in Zambia, the safety of PrEP and ARV in the womb, addressing HIV in the American Indian and Alaska Native communities, and more. I won't be reading the articles per se, but I will give you a brief summary and sometimes I'll throw in my opinion and or commentary. If you want access to the complete articles, all links will be available in the description box below. Number one, Medical Express. Study uncovers relationship between HIV-1 infection and neurodegeneration. Scientists at Northwestern Medicine have uncovered how HIV exploits internal cellular processes to propagate and contribute to neurodegeneration, as per a study published in Nature Communications. HIV-1 can result in neuronal damage that leads to HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders, also known as HAND, but the mechanisms behind this phenomenon have been unclear. The researchers discovered that HIV-1 diverts cellular processes to support its replication, leading to the production of toxic beta amyloids that contribute to HAND. They found that inhibiting this process with clinically approved inhibitors suppressed viral replication in certain immune cells. This could open up new avenues for the therapeutic intervention in HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders. Number two, DW. AIDS. Tanzania makes progress to end epidemic by 2030. Anthony Keondo, a 68-year-old man from Tanzania, has been living with HIV for over two decades. After initially struggling to accept his diagnosis, he embraced antiretroviral medication, which significantly improved his quality of life. Keondo now works as an advocate and chairman of an NGO focused on eradicating poverty, child abuse, and the spread of HIV-AIDS. He has set up a center that provides quick access to antiretroviral medication and uses his own experience to educate others about the disease. Tanzania's progress in fighting HIV-AIDS is reflected in Keondo's success story, with the country aiming to meet UN AIDS targets to end the epidemic by 2030. Number three, CyanMag. Moffitt awarded $5.5 million to study virus-associated tumors among those living with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Moffitt Cancer Center's Center for Immunization and Infection Research is expanding viral infection research in Africa with a $5.5 million grant from the National Cancer Institute. They will investigate virus-associated tumors that disproportionately affect men and women with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa. This is especially relevant as two-thirds of those with HIV reside in this region. The compromised immune systems of HIV patients make them more susceptible to infections that lead to cancer, such as human papillomavirus and Epstein-Barr, thereby increasing their cancer risk. Through the partnership to assess a viral and immune landscape intersections with oncology, also known as pavilion, Moffitt, along with institutions in the US, South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Germany, aims to develop strategies to reduce cancer's impact on HIV patients in low and middle income countries. Number four, the Bay Area Reporter. Long-term HIV survivors fighting for their lives all over again. The fight against HIV has made significant progress in terms of treatment and prevention, but there's a new challenge emerging. The aging population of individuals who have been living with HIV for decades. While medical advancements have prolonged the lives of those with HIV, there is still much to learn about how the virus interacts with the aging process. Long-term survivors face not only medical uncertainties, but also unique social challenges. Many of them lack the family support that older people usually rely on, and have lost many friends to the epidemic. Aging services are not always equipped to handle the needs of this group, and HIV services are often geared towards younger individuals, despite the fact that a majority of Americans living with HIV are over 50 years old. The San Francisco Principles, modeled after the 1983 Denver Principles, with the well-known saying Nothing About Us Without Us, emphasize the importance of including these individuals in policymaking and planning for their specific needs. As the first generation to age with HIV, this group is charting new territory, advocating for more research and better services, and redefining what it means to age with dignity while living with HIV. And folks, this is a topic, subject that I will be covering more and more on this channel. I actually have an interview coming up that we just recorded it yesterday with Jeff Taylor, and he is going to be talking about this subject about aging with HIV, and this will be an ongoing topic of discussion because there is so much to cover in this area. Number five, AIDS map. Our peer approaches the silver bullet for increasing PrEP uptake in low resource settings. A peer-to-peer approach significantly increased PrEP, pre-exposure prophylaxis, use among female sex workers in Zambia, leading to a 97% new PrEP uptake compared to only 22% for the routine approach. Over six months, an initiative engaged and trained sex workers already using PrEP to provide messaging and encourage their peers to take it. This resulted in reaching 1,140 sex workers with 97% of those not having HIV initiating PrEP. The study suggests that this peer-to-peer model has the potential to increase PrEP acceptability and uptake, especially for populations at a higher risk for contracting HIV who may not typically seek prevention services. A similar approach was used in Malawi where PrEP users contacted their sexual partners to encourage them to initiate PrEP. Number six, AIDS map. Exposure to tonofovir-based PrEP in the womb does not affect children's bone density. A study presented at the 12th International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Science has found that children born to mothers who used tonofovir-based pre-exposure prophylaxis during pregnancy did not experience reduced bone density or stunted growth compared to unexposed infants. Tonofovir-disaproxal fumarate, TDF, commonly used for HIV treatment and prevention, has been linked to kidney impairment and bone loss. The research analyzed data from the PrEMA study which evaluated perinatal PrEP used in Kenya. The findings suggested that in utero in the womb, PrEP exposure did not impact bone mineral density or height in early childhood. The study will continue to assess the children's health through five years, so we'll be following up on that. Number seven, Paws.com. Bictarvy is safe and effective during pregnancy. The single-tablet HIV regimen, Bictarvy, widely used among adults living with HIV, has been found to be safe, well-tolerated, and effective during pregnancy. According to research presented at the International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Science 2023. Although other antiretroviral regimens haven't been extensively studied in pregnant women, this study involving 33 pregnant women on Bictarvy showed that while drug concentrations were slightly lower during pregnancy, they remained well above levels needed to inhibit HIV replication. The study found no treatment failures among the women and none of the newborns had detectable viral loads. The researchers concluded that Bictarvy is suitable for use during pregnancy without the need for dose adjustments. And Bictarvy is the medication that I've been taking for, I want to say like three years now. And as of this past week, I just switched over to Dovoto, so I will be providing an update video on that and kind of do a little Dovoto 101 and maybe include any side effects that I may be experiencing or maybe I feel better. We'll be going over that very shortly, so keep an eye out for that as well. Number eight AIDS map. Being outed associated with seven-fold increase in violence related to HIV status for women living with HIV in a highly criminalized Canada. A Canadian study revealed that almost half of women living with HIV in the study had experienced their HIV status being shared without their consent, which is known as being outed. More than a third of participants had encountered physical or verbal violence related to their HIV status. Those who had been outed or had experienced homelessness were more prone to status related violence. The study led by Daniela Beretto of the Center for Agenda and Sexual Health Equity in Vancouver aimed to understand the connection between non-consensual status disclosure and violence among women living with HIV. Canada's punitive approach to HIV criminalization and previous research indicating increased violence due to HIV criminal laws underlined the urgent need for reform and improved services for this vulnerable population. Number nine Axios. Iowa leads U.S. in HIV suppression. Iowa is leading the nation in effectively suppressing HIV and diagnosed patients with 81.7% achieving viral suppression compared to the national average of 65.9% according to CDC's 2021 analysis. This accomplishment is attributed to bipartisan support, strong federal and state funding, and partnerships with local agencies. The rural nature of Iowa has encouraged collaboration to reach more people and programs like quote the project by non-profit primary healthcare provide HIV AIDS care for around 670 individuals facilitated by funding by the Ryan White HIV AIDS program. Despite these successes, sexually transmitted infections like syphilis are on the rise in the state. Iowa has set ambitious goals through the stop HIV Iowa plan to reduce HIV diagnoses to fewer than 10 people by 2030. Number 10 pause.com PACHA meeting spotlights HIV response in American Indian Alaska Native communities. The Presidential Advisory Council on HIV AIDS also known as PACHA recently convened to address the HIV epidemic in American Indian and Alaska Native communities, AI slash AN communities. The meeting held in Phoenix, Arizona featured discussions on the federal Indian trust relationship, tribal sovereignty and federal responsibilities for healthcare. The indigenous HIV AIDS syndemic strategy was presented which adapts national plans to the needs of Native communities and efforts to combat the alarming rise in syphilis and congenital syphilis cases were discussed. The importance of cultural understanding strategic partnerships and community input in serving AI slash AN communities was highlighted. The meeting also focused on addressing HIV and AI slash AN youth emphasizing comprehensive sex education and youth engagement in ending the HIV epidemic. Site visits to healthcare centers and community organizations were also conducted to understand the intersection of their work with efforts to combat HIV. And finally number 11 medical express novel treatment based on gene editing safely and effectively removes HIV like virus from genomes of non-human primates. Scientists at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University have developed a groundbreaking CRISPR gene editing treatment that safely and effectively removes SIV or simian immunodeficiency virus, a virus related to HIV from the genomes of non-human primates. This advancement is the basis for the first ever clinical trial of an HIV gene editing technology in humans, also known as EBT-101, authorized by the FDA in 2022. This study tested EBT-001, a specific CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing therapy and found that this single injection successfully excised or cut out SIV from cells and tissues where the virus hides known as latent reservoirs with no detectable side effects. This achievement paves the way for a potential cure for HIV AIDS and demonstrates the potential of CRISPR based gene therapy for other infectious diseases as well. Dr. Khalili noted, animals treated with CRISPR seemed healthier in appearance and some gained weight. The article goes on to say, analyses show that EBT-001 was broadly distributed reaching tissues throughout the body with evidence of gene editing of SIV, proviral DNA, and all significant viral reservoirs. This work will also help to inform possible gene editing therapies for other infectious diseases like herpes simplex virus and hepatitis B. You can find links to all these articles in the info box below this video. If you'd like to go above and beyond in supporting my channel, I've included my PayPal link below where the least fees will be taken out, otherwise you can always leave a super thanks in the comments down below. 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