Vaginal Gel Slashes AIDS Risk

Successful simian vaccine marks major advance

(NEWSER) - "There's more hope than ever before that an AIDS vaccine might be possible," says the lead author of a study that marks a major advance in the search. The study found that experimental vaccines used on monkeys reduced their susceptibility to the monkey version of HIV by 80%, the Wall Street Journal reports. Vaccinated monkeys that did get infected had less of the virus in their bloodstream than unvaccinated ones, indicating that the vaccination had left them with a more robust immune system. More»

CDC also says 3 in 4 aren't getting appropriate treatment

(NEWSER) - The CDC has a new study out on HIV treatment across the nation with some disturbing numbers, reports the Wall Street Journal :

• Unaware: About 20% of the 1.2 million people in the US with HIV don't know they're infected. That's 240,000 people.
• Treatment: All told, about three-quarters of those infected are not getting adequate treatment to keep the virus in check, thus raising the risk that it gets passed along.
• New infections: About 50,000 are newly diagnosed with HIV each year, and the lifetime cost of care is currently pegged at $367,000.

Researchers conclude that prevention works

(NEWSER) - The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s $258 million AIDS prevention program in India has prevented more than 100,000 people from becoming infected, according to a study published today in the Lancet , which concludes that prevention programs targeted at high-risk populations can be effective. The initiative, dubbed Avahan, focuses on prevention techniques like needle-exchange programs, safe-sex counseling, and condom distribution, which have historically attracted fewer donors than efforts to cure the disease, the AP explains. More»

Study findings could present a 'major health crisis'

(NEWSER) - Alarming new research out of eastern and southern Africa, where both unplanned pregnancies and AIDS wreak havoc: The most popular contraceptive used by women there appears to double their risk of contracting HIV—and if a woman already has HIV, it doubles her risk of transmitting it to her partner compared to women who use no contraception. The study centers around a hormone shot given once every three months, which is the best contraception available in Africa today, one expert tells the New York Times : “If it is now proven that these contraceptions are helping spread the AIDS epidemic, we have a major health crisis on our hands.” More»

Without its cholesterol, virus can't harm immune system

(NEWSER) - A group of US and European scientists have discovered a way to prevent the HIV virus from harming the immune system, in a breakthrough that could lead to an entirely new approach to fighting AIDS. They discovered that by extracting cholesterol, they could render the virus a sitting duck for the immune system’s adaptive response. “It’s like an army that has lost its weapons but still has flags, so another army can recognize it and attack it,” the study’s leader explained to Reuters . More»