Landmark Discoveries Characterize NIH HIV/AIDS

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Landmark Discoveries Characterize NIH HIV/AIDS

WHAT:
On World AIDS Day, December 1st, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, reflects on encouraging milestones from the past year in HIV/AIDS research that are advancing us toward controlling and ultimately ending the pandemic.

• Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) proves effective at reducing the risk of HIV acquisition among men who have sex with men: As published Nov. 23 in the New England Journal of Medicine online, the NIAID-sponsored study known as iPrEx found that a daily dose of an oral antiretroviral drug approved to treat HIV infection reduced the risk of HIV acquisition among men who have sex with men by 44 percent. Even higher rates of effectiveness, up to 73 percent, were found among study participants who adhered most closely to the daily drug regimen. NIAID and The Gates Foundation co-funded the iPrEx study. Additional and continued research is needed to determine whether PrEP will be similarly effective at preventing HIV infection in other at-risk populations.
  
  
• Vaginal microbicide prevents HIV infection: For the first time in nearly 15 years of research, scientists discovered a vaginal microbicide gel that gives women a level of protection against HIV infection. The CAPRISA 004 study, conducted by the Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA), found that the use of a microbicide gel containing a 1 percent concentration of the antiretroviral drug tenofovir resulted in 39 percent fewer HIV infections compared with a placebo gel. NIAID was among the organizations that provided substantial support and resources to establish the infrastructure and training for CAPRISA. Ongoing and future clinical trials will build on these study results with the goal of bringing a safe and effective microbicide to the general public.