Traditional vaccine approaches have not been able to prevent HIV, but researchers are exploring more sophisticated strategies. One novel approach, known as germline targeting, trains the immune system to produce broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) that target parts of the virus that don’t change much as it evolves. Only about 15% of people with HIV produce these bnAbs naturally, but most have rare immature B cells that have the capacity to do so. To overcome HIV’s ability to hide, scientists build immunogens, artificial constructs of viral proteins designed to provoke a robust immune response. A series of different primer and booster immunogens are used in a stepwise manner to encourage maturing B cells to produce bnAbs.

Novel HIV Vaccine Approaches

A unique HIV cure case will be among the scientific highlights of AIDS 2024, the 25th International AIDS Conference, which will take place in Munich, Germany and virtually from 22 to 26 July. For the first time, scientists will share information about the “next Berlin Patient”, who appears to be...

First-of-its-kind HIV Cure Case Among Scientific Highlights at AIDS 2024

Both long-term survivors and those newly diagnosed with HIV have plenty of treatment options to choose from to keep the virus suppressed. In addition to keeping you healthy, having an undetectable viral load prevents you from transmitting the virus via sex. Also, for most folks, current HIV medications cause virtually no side effects. Medications now range from once-daily all-in-one pills to long-acting injectables.

Conversation Builds Health Care Relationships

The immune system senses and responds to changes in physiologic health, and a new tool called the immune health metric (IHM) can measure and even predict some of these changes, an NIAID study has found. If doctors could use the IHM to detect health problems long before symptoms appear, they could potentially act early to prevent disease, the investigators suggest. Their findings are published in the journal Nature Medicine.

A New Way to Measure and Predict Human Immune Health

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been a game-changer for people with HIV. But HIV is skilled at “hiding” and can reappear in the blood stream shortly after ART is stopped. That’s why NIAID and partners are investigating strategies to completely clear HIV from a person’s body, effectively curing them, or to reduce it to levels that can be suppressed by their own immune systems.

Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies Evaluated in Many HIV Cure Strategies

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Herbie J Pilato

Kate Jackson began her acting career as a silent ghost on TV's classic 1960s gothic daytime drama Dark Shadows but remains alive and well years after two horrific battles with breast cancer. Jackson went on to small screen prime-time stardom on police/detective/crime drama/comedies like The Rookies, Charlie's Angels, Scarecrow and Mrs. King, and more. This is her triumphant story.

'Charlie's Angels' Star Kate Jackson Has Courageously Battled and Conquered Cancer Several Times

Globally, 70% of people are projected to live in cities by 2050. Consequently, urban settings will play a vital role in addressing the HIV epidemic as well as broader health issues. A new report assesses the urban HIV epidemic and offers actionable recommendations to improve HIV responses. Released to coincide...

Here’s How Cities and Urban Settings Can Better Respond to HIV

Over the past two years, a simple but baffling request has preceded most of my encounters with medical professionals: “Rate your pain on a scale of zero to 10.”. I trained as a physician and have asked patients the very same question thousands of times, so I think hard about how to quantify the sum of the sore hips, the prickly thighs, and the numbing, itchy pain near my left shoulder blade. I pause and then, mostly arbitrarily, choose a number. “Three or four?” I venture, knowing the real answer is long, complicated, and not measurable in this one-dimensional way.

Pain Doesn’t Belong on a Scale of Zero to 10

[Editor’s note: This case was presented at a July 18 press briefing in advance of the International AIDS Conference next week. POZ will update this report, if needed, after the full data are presented on July 24.]. A seventh person appears to be cured of HIV after a stem...

The Next Berlin Patient: Another Man Cured of HIV After Stem Cell Transplant

Miami, FL

Lamar McMullen of Miami is positively evangelical about long-acting injectables for HIV treatment. Currently, only one such medication is approved for injection every other month; others in the pipeline are intended to last even longer. Since giving up his once-a-day pill for a long-acting injectable, McMullen has been pleased with the results.

Getting Comfortable With Long-Acting Injectables

Strong bones help maintain mobility and enhance quality of life. People with HIV are more prone to bone loss and fractures, but you can take steps to improve bone health. Bone is living tissue largely made up of minerals and collagen. Cells called osteoblasts continually add new bone tissue, while osteoclasts dissolve old bone. As people age, bone resorption starts to outpace bone formation, and bone mass naturally declines. Osteopenia is an earlier stage of bone loss, which can progress to osteoporosis.

HIV and Your Bones

South Carolina State

Los Angeles County, CA

In 1981, pop-music sensation Andy Gibb was at the top of the charts. The younger brother of Barry, Robin, and Maurice, a.k.a. The Bee Gees, commenced a tumultuous romance with actress Victoria Principle, who played Pam Ewing on Dallas, TV's then-Number 1 prime-time series. But after the relationship ended, Andy's life, already challenged by substance abuse, did as well. This is their tragic story.

The Tragic Death of Pop Star Andy Gibb & His Traumatic Romance with 'Dallas' Star Victoria Principle

I was raised Roman Catholic. As a first-generation Cuban American, my religious background isn’t much of a surprise. I was baptized and even confirmed, a sacrament to express a recommitment to the faith. Growing up, I often considered becoming a priest. As someone who was struggling to accept myself...

One Moment in Time

Long-acting injectable cabotegravir (CAB-LA) was safe and well tolerated as HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) before and during pregnancy in the follow-up phase of a global study among cisgender women. The analysis of outcomes from more than 300 pregnancies and infants will be presented at the 2024 International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2024) in Munich, Germany.

Long-Acting Injectable Cabotegravir for HIV Prevention is Safe in Pregnancy

Florida State

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Jacksonville Today

Republican Donald Trump has a 7-point lead over Democrat Kamala Harris among Florida voters, 49% to 42%, according to a new poll from the University of North Florida. Four percent are backing another candidate, and 6% are undecided or didn’t answer.

New Florida poll: Trump leads; support strong for abortion and recreational weed

A Year of Hepatitis Advances to Mark World Hepatitis Day. Viral hepatitis affects the lives of about one in twenty people in the world, resulting in over a million deaths each year. NIAID is working on many ways to prevent and treat the different types of hepatitis, including the development of vaccines and improved therapeutics and diagnostics.

NIAID Research to Eliminate the Threat of Viral Hepatitis Across the Globe

As a Black queer man raised in a religious household in the South, I spent most of my life prioritizing being loved by others over loving myself. I felt that to be loved by my family, my community and God, I had to hide parts of myself. I was ashamed of my sensitive side, not realizing my empathy was a gift. Many men carry this same burden and fear being vulnerable.

Creating Safe Space

For more than 10 years, activist and criminologist Alexander McClelland has been interviewing people who have been charged and convicted in HIV-related cases. The result of this work is Criminalized Lives: HIV and Legal Violence (Rutgers University Press, 2024). The book includes a foreword by Robert Suttle, a leading voice within the HIV decriminalization movement, who was charged and convicted under HIV laws in Louisiana as well as illustrations by artist Eric Kostiuk Williams.

Criminalized Lives

Indiana State

Eighteen people living with HIV in Indiana were arrested between 2001 and 2019 for donating plasma, though, thanks to effective screening methods, none of them posed a risk of transmitting the virus, found a new report by the Williams Institute. The Williams Institute is a research center focusing on law...

People With HIV Have Been Arrested in Indiana for Donating Plasma

Cover: Long-term survivor Bishop Stacey S. Latimer shares his advice on aging with HIV. Inside: Twice-yearly PrEP for women; HIV and your bones. Plus: Mark S. King questions his life-long fixation on survival.

POZ September 2024

NewsBreak

HIV Unmuted - The Game-Changing Research from AIDS 2024

This episode of HIV unmuted introduces a new host and format for the award-winning IAS podcast. Our host, Juan Michael Porter II, the Senior Editor for...

HIV Unmuted - The Game-Changing Research from AIDS 2024

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