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• Lack Of Funding, Inaccurate Public Perception Lead Atlanta Advocacy Group To Close

  Posted: September 30th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  Public perception that the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the U.S. is under control and increased competition for grants has led the Atlanta-based not-for-profit group AIDS Survival Project to shut down operations, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

• Indian Matrimonial Web Site Helps HIV-Positive People Find Partners

  Posted: September 30th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  An Indian Web site launched last year by government employee Anil Kumar Valiv aims to help HIV-positive people find partners who also are HIV-positive and are interested in marriage, Reuters reports.

• Botswana, PSI Distribute 60M Condoms; PSI Plans Initiative To Curb Spread Of HIV, Alcohol Abuse

  Posted: September 30th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  The government of Botswana, along with Population Services International, has distributed almost 60 million condoms in the country during the past two years in an attempt to scale up the fight against HIV/AIDS, Mmegi reports.

• Knowledge And Awareness Of HIV/AIDS Remain Low In China, Survey Finds

  Posted: September 30th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  HIV/AIDS Remain Low in Chin Knowledge and awareness of HIV/AIDS and its transmission remain low in China, and considerable stigma surrounding the disease still exists in the country, according to a survey released on Friday by Beijing's Renmin University, AFP/Yahoo! News reports.

• Washington Post Profiles Actress, HIV/AIDS Advocate Sheryl Lee Ralph H6

  Posted: September 30th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  The Washington Post on Monday profiled actress and HIV/AIDS advocate Sheryl Lee Ralph, whose one-woman show "Sometimes I Cry" aims to increase awareness about the disease. Ralph has performed the show nationwide as well as internationally, and she staged it on Saturday in Washington, D.C.

• 'Not Surprising' That HIV/AIDS In U.S. Is 'Worse Than Officials Had Expected,' Opinion Piece Says

  Posted: September 30th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  The HIV/AIDS epidemic in the U.S. "from the beginning" has been "wrongly filtered through shifting public and political views that tried to focus blame or susceptibility on populations of people defined by social and demographic factors," physician and columnist Kate Scannell writes in a Contra Costa Times opinion piece.

• Terrence Higgins Trust Offers Gay Men STI And HIV Testing In Vauxhall, UK

  Posted: September 30th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) are working with Lambeth Primary Care Trust to offer gay and bisexual men free and confidential STI testing, as well as information, advice and support around sexual health, and drug and alcohol use. This walk-in service is based at the Vauxhall Riverside Clinic, and is open Monday - Friday from 5-7.30pm. The clinic also provides a 1 hour HIV testing service every Tuesday from 5-7pm.

• Number Of Grandparents Caring For Orphaned Grandchildren Worldwide Doubles In Ten Years, UK

  Posted: September 30th, 2008, 6:00am EDT

  New research conducted by the Help the Aged Sponsor a Grandparent programme reveals that the number of grandparents caring for AIDS orphans in developing countries has doubled over the last ten years.1 Today, more grandparents than ever before are the sole carers of their grandchildren with up to half of the world's 15 million AIDS orphans being cared for by a grandparent2.

• PEPFAR Suspends Funding For Three Ranbaxy AIDS Drugs Banned By FDA

  Posted: September 29th, 2008, 3:00pm EDT

  The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief program has suspended funding for three antiretroviral drugs manufactured by Indian generic drugmaker Ranbaxy that were included in an importation ban imposed by FDA on Sept.

• Senate Approves Bill That Would Require HIV Testing In Federal Prisons

  Posted: September 29th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  The Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved by voice vote a House-approved bill (HR 1943) that would require HIV/AIDS testing for inmates upon arrival in federal prisons, CQ Today reports.

• Schwarzenegger Signs Crucial California HIV Testing Bill Targeting Repeat Testers (AB 2899, Portantino, D-Pasadena)

  Posted: September 29th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the operator of the largest non-government HIV testing program in California, today praised Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for signing Assembly Bill 2899, (Anthony Portantino, D-Pasadena), a bill which will provide some latitude for California HIV testing centers in the provision of related education and counseling services.

• HHS Should Act Quickly To End Travel Restrictions For HIV-Positive People, Editorial Says

  Posted: September 29th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  HHS should take action "soon to end a de facto form of discrimination" by rewriting its rules prohibiting HIV-positive people from visiting the U.S., a

• HIV/AIDS Services Agency Sues New Hampshire Town For Restricting Access To Group Home

  Posted: September 29th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  A Keene, N.H., AIDS services agency -- AIDS Services for the Monadnock Region -- said it is suing Gilsum, N.H., town officials for overstepping their authority and violating the state constitution by restricting who is allowed to live at a group home run by ASMR, the Keene Sentinel reports.

• Youth Campaign To Fight HIV/AIDS In Indian City, Times Of India Reports

  Posted: September 29th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  A campaign to scale up the fight against HIV/AIDS through youth leadership, called "Wake up Pune," has planned several activities in the Indian city of Pune between Sept. 7 and Dec. 1, the Times of India reports. According to Hans Billimoria of the

• AHF Advocacy Spurs GSK To Suspend Fear-Mongering AIDS Drug Ads

  Posted: September 29th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest non-profit AIDS healthcare provider in the United States and operator of free AIDS treatment clinics in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean and Asia, acknowledged British multi-national drug giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) for wisely suspending publication of its recent series of direct-to-consumer print advertisements that, under the guise of patient education, instead capitalized on patients' fears of HIV treatment.

• Discoveries On How HIV Evades Immune System Could One Day Eliminate The Need To Take Antiviral Drugs For A Lifetime

  Posted: September 29th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  University of Michigan scientists have provided the most detailed picture yet of a key HIV accessory protein that foils the body's normal immune response. Based on the findings, which appear online in the journal PLoS Pathogens, the team is searching for new drugs that may someday allow infected people to be cured and no longer need today's AIDS drugs for a lifetime.

• People Unaware Of HIV/AIDS Status Could Hurt Preventive Efforts In West Pacific, WHO Says

  Posted: September 28th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  About 1.3 million people, including 21,000 children, in the West Pacific region were living with HIV/AIDS in 2007, but "the majority of people living with HIV still do not know they are sick," the World Health Organization said in a release on Thursday, Xinhuanet reports.

• Scientists Unmask Key HIV Protein, Open Door For New AIDS Drugs

  Posted: September 27th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  University of Michigan scientists have provided the most detailed picture yet of a key HIV accessory protein that foils the body's normal immune response. Based on the findings, which appear online in the journal PLoS Pathogens, the team is searching for new drugs that may someday allow infected people to be cured and no longer need today's AIDS drugs for a lifetime.

• Leaders Of Kenya's Luo Ethnic Group Embrace Male Circumcision After Meeting With Medical Experts, Lawmakers

  Posted: September 26th, 2008, 3:00pm EDT

  An advisory board made up of Luo leaders from the Nyanza region of Kenya on Monday gave their support for a voluntary medical male circumcision program, a decision that Kenyan officials say is a significant step in the region's fight against HIV/AIDS, Kenya's Daily Nation reports.

• North Carolina Prisons To Begin Testing All Inmates For HIV

  Posted: September 26th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  Prisons in North Carolina will start screening all inmates for HIV beginning in November, the Raleigh News & Observer reports. The decision to begin the program is a result of "mounting pressure" on prison officials from legislators, black religious leaders and public health officials, who say inmates are the most at-risk group for HIV transmission, the News & Observer reports.

• Washington, D.C., To Launch HIV/AIDS Prevention Ad Campaign In Response To Report

  Posted: September 26th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  An advertising campaign to encourage HIV/AIDS testing and prevention will be launched in Washington, D.C., Mayor Adrian Fenty said on Wednesday while responding to a report on the epidemic in the district, the Washington Post reports. The report, which was released by the D.C.

• Study Finds 3 Million IDUs Worldwide Are HIV-Positive

  Posted: September 26th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  Of the 15.9 million injection drug users throughout the world, three million likely are HIV-positive, according to a study published on Wednesday in the Lancet, AFP/Google.com reports (AFP/Google.com, 9/23).

• Guardian Publishes Several Articles On Poverty, Its Effect On HIV/AIDS Pandemic

  Posted: September 26th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  London's Guardian on Wednesday published several articles on poverty, including its effect on HIV/AIDS and malaria. Summaries appear below. "

• AHF Urges Passage Of 'Stop AIDS In Prison Act', USA

  Posted: September 26th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest non-profit HIV/AIDS healthcare provider in the US which currently provides treatment, care and support services to more than 80,000 individuals in 22 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean and Asia, urges the passage of the Stop AIDS in Prison Act (H.R. 1943), scheduled to go before the Senate Judiciary Committee today.

• IRIN/PlusNews Examines Effect Of World Food Programme Pullout In Uganda On HIV-Positive People

  Posted: September 26th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  The United Nations World Food Programme is withdrawing food aid to some HIV-positive people in Uganda as part of broader cutbacks in the country's aid program that have come after a shortfall in funding, IRIN/PlusNews reports.

• Landmark Campaign Reaches Rural Kenyans With Tools To Prevent Malaria, Diarrhoeal Disease And HIV

  Posted: September 26th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  An important new approach to fighting malaria, diarrhoeal disease and HIV among adult men and women aged 15-49 has successfully been demonstrated for the first time in the Western Kenyan district of Kakamega in Lurambi division. One of the unique features of the campaign, called the "Integrated Prevention Demonstration," was that it provided adults an opportunity to learn their HIV status through community-based testing.

• HIV Positive Injection Drug Users On Worldwide Scale

  Posted: September 26th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  There could be three million HIV positive injection drug users (IDUs) in the world, according to an article released on September 24, 2008 in The Lancet.

• Thai Program Provides Sex Education, Including HIV/AIDS Prevention, To Students

  Posted: September 25th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  Thailand's The Nation on Monday profiled a program in Thailand that uses a "water exchange" to provide students with sex education, including information about HIV/AIDS. According to The Nation, talking about sex often is taboo in the country.The water exchange involves giving each student a clear bottle of water.

• Nipple Shield That Deactivates HIV Prevents Virus Transmission During Breastfeeding, BBC NewsReports

  Posted: September 25th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  A nipple shield that disinfects milk as it leaves the breast has shown to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission, BBC News reports. Devised by Stephen Gerrard, a

• Complexity Of Canadian Law Hindering Shipments Of Generic Antiretrovirals To Developing Countries, Company Says

  Posted: September 25th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  Canadian generic drug company Apotex on Wednesday is scheduled to send Canada's first shipment of generic antiretrovirals to developing countries, but the company said it will not ship the drugs next year because of the complexity of the 2004 law allowing production of cheaper medications, the Toronto Star reports.

• Advocates At U.N. Meeting Protest Jailing Of Iranian Physicians

  Posted: September 25th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  Human rights advocates on Monday during the United Nations General Assembly in New York City protested the detention of two Iranian physicians who implemented Iran's first HIV prevention and treatment program, the Washington Post reports. Brothers Arash Alaei and Kamiar Alaei were arrested in June and have been

• Chinese Officials Announce Stricter Punishment For Contaminated Blood Sales

  Posted: September 25th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  The Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate of China recently released details of a new law regarding illegal blood sales, which state that any agent collecting or supplying blood that causes at least five people to become infected with HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B, hepatitis C or syphilis could face a sentence of 10 years to life in prison, the

• Washington, D.C., Has Made Significant Gains In Fighting HIV/AIDS, Must Scale Up Awareness Efforts, Report Says

  Posted: September 25th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  Washington, D.C., has made significant gains in fighting HIV/AIDS, but in order to curb the spread of the disease in the city -- which has one of the highest infection rates in the country -- it must strengthen its public awareness campaign, according to a report released on Wednesday by the DC Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, the

• Researchers Study Relationship Between Injecting Drug Use And HIV

  Posted: September 25th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  Estonia, Ukraine, Burma, Indonesia, Thailand, Nepal, Argentina, Brazil, and Kenya all have one disturbing fact in common: an HIV positive rate of over 40% for injecting drug users (IDUs). An article published early online and in an upcoming edition of The Lancet estimates that worldwide there are some 15.9 million IDUs - 3 million of whom are HIV positive. In the last ten years, the number of countries that report injecting drugs use has increased.

• Correction: Ranbaxy Antiretroviral Drug Story From Sept. 22

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  The Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report incorrectly stated the amount of President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief funding received by the Indian generic pharmaceutical company Ranbaxy. The company has received an estimated $8.9 million from PEPFAR (

• CD4 Tests Can Reduce Costs, Extend Lives Of HIV-Positive People In Africa, Study Says

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  "Cost-Effectiveness of HIV Monitoring Strategies in Resource-Limited Settings," Archives of Internal Medicine: The use of a CD4 test could help reduce costs and extend the lives of HIV-positive people in Southern Africa, according to a study conducted by researchers at Stanford University's

• Thai Health Experts Call For Review Of Prevention Of Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission Program

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  Health experts in Thailand are calling for a review of the country's national program to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission, which follows World Health Organization guidelines, the Bangkok Post reports.

• Raleigh News & Observer Profiles UNC Researcher Who Investigates Social Factors Behind Higher HIV/AIDS Rates For Blacks

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  The Raleigh News & Observer on Sunday profiled University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill medical researcher Adaora Adimora, who has investigated why HIV/AIDS seems to affect blacks more than members of other races and ethnicities (Niolet, Raleigh News & Observer, 9/21).

• Estimated 3 Million Injecting Drug Users Worldwide Could Be HIV Positive

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  New research suggests there could be 3 million injecting drug users (IDUs) worldwide who are HIV positive; and that the number of countries reporting injecting drug use has increased over the last decade. The proportions of IDUs who are HIV positive is over 40% in nine countries* with data.

• San Francisco Chronicle Examines Summer Camp That Seeks To Empower Young People Living With HIV/AIDS

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  The San Francisco Chronicle on Sunday profiled Camp Liquid, an eight-day summer camp for HIV-positive people between ages 15 and 20. An offshoot of

• National Journal Examines Advocates,' Lawmakers' Efforts To Create Domestic HIV/AIDS Plan

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  The National Journal on Saturday examined the efforts of some lawmakers and advocates to call for "renewed attention" to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the U.S., including pushing for a national plan to address the epidemic. According to the Journal, the recent

• New Research: Looking Past The 'Down Low''

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  The popular media in the U.S. have focused too much on moral issues surrounding black bisexual men who do not disclose their same-sex behaviors to female lovers, otherwise known as men "on the Down Low," with this focus creating a stigma that interferes with effective public health strategies, says Indiana University sexual health expert Brian Dodge.

• Development Leaders Point To Significant Progress In Mother And Child Health And Reduction Of Malaria And HIV/AIDS Deaths In Poorest Nations

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  Significant progress towards reducing child and maternal mortality is being made but to meet the Millennium Development Goals 4,5,6, strategies aimed at reaching the world's most inaccessible, marginalized and vulnerable populations will be required, health leaders said today.

• Significant Progress In Mother And Child Health And Reduction Of Malaria And HIV/AIDS Deaths In Poorest Nations

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  Significant progress towards reducing child and maternal mortality is being made but to meet the Millennium Development Goals 4,5,6, strategies aimed at reaching the world's most inaccessible, marginalized and vulnerable populations will be required, health leaders said today.

• Canadian-Made Life Saving HIV/AIDS Drug Heading To Africa Under Canada's Access To Medicines Regime (CAMR)

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  Apotex Inc, the largest Canadian-owned pharmaceutical company, is pleased to announce that Apo-TriAvir, a triple combination HIV/AIDS drug, approved under Canada's Access to Medicines Regime (CAMR), is ready to ship to Rwanda, the only country to make a request through a program tender process. The first shipment of seven million tablets, which will help save the lives of 21,000 people, is scheduled to leave from Toronto on September 24th, 2008.

• University Of Miami Receives Grant From National Center On Minority And Health Disparities

  Posted: September 24th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  El Centro, at the University of Miami School of Nursing and Health Studies, has received a $225,000 grant by its sponsor, the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities of the National Institutes of Health. These funds will support a regional seminar series on health disparities related to HIV/AIDS, substance abuse, and family and intimate partner violence.

• Raleigh News & Observer Profiles UNC Researcher Who Investigates Social Factors Behind Higher HIV/AIDS Rates For Blacks

  Posted: September 23rd, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  The Raleigh News & Observer on Sunday profiled University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill medical researcher Adaora Adimora, who has investigated why HIV/AIDS seems to affect blacks more than members of other races and ethnicities (Niolet, Raleigh News & Observer, 9/21).

• UNAIDS Examines Challenges In China's Response To HIV/AIDS

  Posted: September 23rd, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  "Focus on China's AIDS Response," UNAIDS: Although China's HIV prevalence is less than 0.1% of the population, the country continues to experience challenges in addressing the virus, according to a report from UNAIDS.

• News From The American Chemical Society, Sept. 17, 2008

  Posted: September 23rd, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  Calorie-free natural sweetener moves one step closer to use in the U. S. Researchers in Georgia are reporting an advance toward the possible use of a new natural non-caloric sweetener in soft drinks and other food products in the United States. Stevia, which is 300 times more potent than sugar but calorie-free, is already used in some countries as a food and beverage additive to help fight obesity and diabetes.

• Supply Shortages, Poverty Interrupt Antiretroviral Treatments In Swaziland

  Posted: September 23rd, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  Health facilities in Swaziland are experiencing shortages in antiretroviral drugs and other medications despite insistence from the country's health department that the shortage has been resolved, IRIN/PlusNews reports. According to officials with the

• Use Of AIDS Test Can Prolong Life While Saving Money, Stanford Study Finds

  Posted: September 23rd, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  A simple test given to HIV/AIDS patients in southern Africa could extend their lives by nearly a year and save health-care costs at the same time, according to a new study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine and the Palo Alto Veterans Affairs Health Care System.

• World Food Programme To Phase Out Aid In Uganda, Including HIV/AIDS Support

  Posted: September 23rd, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  The United Nations World Food Programme will phase out food aid and HIV/AIDS support to Uganda, a United Nations official said on Thursday, Xinhua/ChinaView.cn.com reports. The plan could affect more than 1.5 million people.

• CDC Needs Additional $4.8B To Reduce Annual Number Of New Infections, Officials Say

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 3:00pm EDT

  CDC officials on Tuesday at a House Government Reform and Oversight Committee hearing said they would need an additional $4.8 billion dollars over the next five years to reduce the annual number of new HIV infections in the U.S., CQ HealthBeat reports (Stanchak, CQ HealthBeat, 9/16).

• Article Examines Infectiousness Of TB Patients Living With HIV

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  "The Infectiousness of Tuberculosis Patients Coinfected With HIV," PLoS Medicine: Roderick Escombe of Imperial College London and colleagues conducted the study to examine infectiousness and airborne transmission of TB by exposing guinea pigs to air from the HIV/TB ward of a hospital in Peru.

• Tanzanian President Kikwete Calls For Increased Efforts To Fight HIV/AIDS

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete on Saturday said that increased efforts to fight HIV/AIDS in the country need to be taken, the Citizen/AllAfrica.com reports. Speaking to residents of Kibaya in Tanzania's Manyara Region, Kikwete said that HIV/AIDS continues to threaten the country's development, despite efforts by the government and development partners to curb the spread of the disease.

• Female Condoms Promoted Through Beauty Salon Initiative In Malawi

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  The United Nations Population Fund and Population Services International have introduced a program to distribute female condoms in Malawian beauty salons in an effort to encourage their use and curb the spread of HIV, VOA News reports.

• Inaugural Meeting Of African HIV/AIDS Campaign Examines Components Of Successful Fight Against Disease

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  The most crucial elements in the fight against HIV/AIDS are the building of institutions, structures and leadership, Christopher Molomo, national coordinator of Botswana's National AIDS Coordinating Agency, said at this week's inaugural meeting of the Champions for an AIDS-Free Generation, Mmegi/AllAfrica.com reports (Ookeditse, Mmegi/AllAfrica.com, 9/15).

• U.S. News & World Report Examines HIV/AIDS Rate Among Black Women

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  U.S. News & World Report recently looked at how "black women continue to be struck particularly hard" by HIV/AIDS (Payne, U.S. News & World Report, 9/12). According to the latest available figures reported by

• Survey Shows 'Grey's Anatomy' Viewers Gained HIV Knowledge

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  Many viewers of an episode of ABC's prime-time medical drama "Grey's Anatomy" that included a story about mother-to-child HIV transmission gained awareness of the issue, according to a survey released on Tuesday by the Kaiser Family Foundation, USA Today reports.

• Citing Safety Concerns, FDA Bans Imports Of Ranbaxy Drugs Made In Two Indian Plants, Including Antiretrovirals

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  FDA on Tuesday announced that it has banned imports of more than 30 generic drugs, including antiretrovirals, manufactured by Indian generic drugmaker Ranbaxy, citing manufacturing deficiencies at two of the company's plants, the Wall Street Journal reports.

• HIV Support Centre To Pilot Rapid Testing Service, UK

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  The HIV Support Centre is to offer a confidential Rapid HIV Testing Service from this October as part of their programme to promote and encourage a healthy and responsible approach to sexual health. The Charity's Chief Executive Kieran Harris said "A large part of our organisation's work is geared towards promoting and encouraging people to make more informed judgements about their sexual health and this new service will form an integral part of our work.

• Abbott Uses NAFTA To Charge Mexico Significantly Higher Than Middle-income Country Rate

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 6:00am EDT

  As part of its ongoing campaign to lower drug prices and improve access to lifesaving AIDS treatments globally, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), which operates three free treatment clinics in Mexico (Puerto Vallarta, Cancun and Tuxtla Gutierrez) today unveiled a new print advertisement criticizing Abbott Laboratories, Inc. for the steep price it charges for its key AIDS drug Kaletra in Mexico. The ad, headlined

• Why Some Primates, But Not Humans, Can Live With Immunodeficiency Viruses And Not Progress To AIDS

  Posted: September 18th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  Key differences in immune system signaling and the production of specific immune regulatory molecules may explain why some primates are able to live with an immunodeficiency virus infection without progressing to AIDS-like illness, unlike other primate species, including rhesus macaques and humans, that succumb to disease.

• India Witnessing Growth Of 'High-Price' Commercial Sex Workers, Reuters Reports

  Posted: September 17th, 2008, 3:00pm EDT

  A new group of "high-price" commercial sex workers is emerging in India and "servicing India's nouveau riche and the throng of foreign businessmen drawn to a booming economy," Reuters reports.

• More Teenagers Taking HIV Tests In Malawi, Survey Finds

  Posted: September 17th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  An increasing percentage of teenagers in Malawi have taken an HIV test during the past two years, according to a Welfare Monitoring Survey recently released by the National Statistical Office, Malawi's Nation Reporter reports.

• HIV/AIDS Center In Poland Launches Campaign To Curb Spread Of Disease

  Posted: September 17th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  Poland's National AIDS Centre has launched a campaign called "Return Without HIV" aimed at encouraging people to take HIV tests after traveling to regions with high HIV/AIDS burdens, The News reports.

• Ghanaian President Kufuor Thanks Bush For Efforts To Address HIV, Malaria, Other Issues During White House Visit

  Posted: September 17th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  Ghanaian President John Kufuor on Monday during a visit to the White House praised President Bush for his efforts to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases, AFP/Google.com reports (AFP/Google.com, 9/15).Kufuor during his arrival ceremony said the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and the

• U.S. News & World Report Examines HIV/AIDS Rate Among Black Women

  Posted: September 17th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  U.S. News & World Report recently looked at how "black women continue to be struck particularly hard" by HIV/AIDS (Payne, U.S. News & World Report, 9/12). According to the latest available figures reported by

• 'Two-Speed' HIV/AIDS Epidemic Occurring In Australia, Opinion Piece Says

  Posted: September 17th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  A "two-speed" HIV/AIDS epidemic is taking place in Australia, Jonathan Anderson, president of the Australasian Society for HIV Medicine, writes in an Australian opinion piece.

• Sex-For-Fish Practice In Kenyan Fishing Communities Contributing To Spread Of HIV

  Posted: September 17th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  A practice within some Kenyan fishing communities in which young female fish sellers develop sexual relationships with fishermen and middlemen in exchange for fish is exposing a new generation to HIV, IRIN/PlusNews reports. According to statistics from the United Nation's

• HIV Inhibited By Herpes Drug In Patients Infected With Both Viruses

  Posted: September 17th, 2008, 6:00am EDT

  Researchers at the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH), McGill University and other institutions have discovered how a simple antiviral drug developed decades ago suppresses HIV in patients who are also infected with herpes. Their study was published in the Sept. 11 issue of the journal Cell Host and Microbe. An NIH research team led by Dr. Leonid Margolis made the initial discovery, while Dr.

• Researchers Invigorate "Exhausted" Immune Cells: Findings Support New Therapies For HIV, Hepatitis, Cancer

  Posted: September 17th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  In battles against chronic infections, the body's key immune cells often become exhausted and ineffective. Researchers at The Wistar Institute have found a way to restore vigor to these killer T cells by blocking a key receptor on their surface, findings that may advance the development of new therapies for diseases such as HIV, hepatitis B and C, and cancer.

• HIV, Malaria Interventions Help Reduce Mortality Among Young Children, Challenges Remain, UNICEF Report Says

  Posted: September 16th, 2008, 3:00pm EDT

  Disease interventions, such as the use of insecticide-treated nets to prevent malaria and increased access to HIV treatment and prevention, have helped reduce the number of deaths among children younger than age five worldwide to 9.2 million in 2007, down from 9.7 million in 2006 and 12.7 million in 1990, according to a UNICEF report published Friday in the journal Lancet,

• Rate Of New HIV Infections Among Blacks In South Carolina Six Times Higher Than Among Other Races, Health Department Estimates Find

  Posted: September 16th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  The rate of new HIV infections among blacks in South Carolina was six times higher than among all other races combined in 2006, according to new estimates released Friday by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, the Columbia State reports.

• New York State 'Safety Net' For People Living With HIV/AIDS 'Being Dismantled' By Funding Cuts, Opinion Piece Says

  Posted: September 16th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  Although statistics that indicate declining new HIV infections among heterosexuals and injection drug users "are testament to aggressive prevention programs," the "trends also show an increase in infections" among men who have sex with men, especially MSM younger than age 30, Paula Silvestrone, executive director of AIDS Rochester, writes in a

• IRIN/PlusNews Examines Issues Surrounding Male Circumcision In Kenya's Luo Community

  Posted: September 16th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  Kenya's plan to launch a male circumcision campaign in the province of Nyanza in late September to curb the spread of HIV is facing difficulties from some members of the Luo community, IRIN/PlusNews reports.

• Indian High Court Forms Committee To Address HIV/AIDS In Prisons

  Posted: September 16th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  The high court in Mumbai, India, on Thursday formed a committee to create guidelines aimed at preventing the spread of HIV in prisons in response to the increasing spread of the virus among inmates, the Daily News & Analysis reports. Justices Ranjana Desai and DY Chandrachud requested that Advocate General Ravi Kadam work with the inspector general for prisons to complete a draft of the guidelines by Oct. 1.

• Newly Reported HIV Cases Increasing In Alberta, Canada

  Posted: September 16th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  The number of newly reported HIV cases in Alberta, Canada, increased by 29% in 2007 compared with 2005, the CP/Calgary Sun reports. Alberta recorded 225 new HIV cases in 2007, compared with 175 in 2005. Of those cases, 99 were recorded in Calgary, compared with 89 in Edmonton.

• 'Exhausted' Immune Cells Invigorated: Findings Support New Therapies For HIV, Hepatitis, Cancer

  Posted: September 16th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  In battles against chronic infections, the body's key immune cells often become exhausted and ineffective. Researchers at The Wistar Institute have found a way to restore vigor to these killer T cells by blocking a key receptor on their surface, findings that may advance the development of new therapies for diseases such as HIV, hepatitis B and C, and cancer.

• AIDS Research Network Expands

  Posted: September 16th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  A national AIDS research consortium led by the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) has two new university partners. The Centers for AIDS Research at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are now part of the nine-member consortium run by UAB's Center for AIDS Research (CFAR). The consortium is called CFAR Network of Integrated Clinical Systems (CNICS).

• CDC Releases Subpopulation Estimates From Data On Annual New HIV Infections; New Infections High Among Blacks, MSM

  Posted: September 15th, 2008, 3:00pm EDT

  The majority of new HIV infections in the U.S. in 2006 occurred among men who have sex with men, according to a study released Thursday in CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the New York Times reports.

• Efforts, Events Encourage Healthier Lifestyles Among Blacks, Raise HIV/AIDS Awareness, Other Health Issues Among Hispanics

  Posted: September 15th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  The following summarizes efforts and events that seek to reduce racial health disparities. Lorain County, Ohio: The National Urban League's Save Our Sons African-American Health Project is hoping to encourage more black men to lead healthy lifestyles through behavioral changes. For six weeks, adult black men pledge to eat healthier, exercise and learn about diabetes.

• USAID Grant For Microbicide Research 'Encouraging,' Editorial Says

  Posted: September 15th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  A $100 million federal grant to Eastern Virginia Medical School's CONRAD program for research on microbicides could help "break the cycle" of women contracting HIV because their partners refuse to wear condoms, a

• Living With HIV: How Children Are Making The Successful Transition Into Adulthood

  Posted: September 15th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  Most of what we read and hear about HIV and AIDS is bad. It is a bleak landscape where good news is generally hard to find. Let alone what is happening in sub-Saharan Africa and other parts of the world under siege from this virus, the UK too is grappling with increasing health challenges from the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

• Asian Development Bank, Vietnamese Province Launch Project To Curb Spread Of HIV/AIDS Among Youth

  Posted: September 15th, 2008, 6:00am EDT

  The Asian Development Bank and the Vietnamese province of Hai Duong have launched an initiative aimed at reducing HIV/AIDS among young people, the VNA/VietNamNet reports. The $473,296 project is funded by $443,296 from ABD, with the remaining funding allocated in the provincial budget.

• Effective Public Health Response Needed To Fight HIV/AIDS In Southeast Asia, WHO Says

  Posted: September 15th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  The World Health Organization on Thursday called for an effective public health approach to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS in Southeast Asia, India's Economic Times reports. HIV/AIDS in the region was the focus of the third day of WHO's

• Herpes Drug Could Help Control HIV, Study Finds

  Posted: September 15th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  Acyclovir -- a low-cost, generic drug used to treat herpes -- also might help control HIV in people living with both viruses, according to a study published Wednesday in the journal ell Host and Microbe, Reuters reports. According to the study, acyclovir can help control HIV in infected individuals but only in tissues that also are infected with herpes.

• Tuberculosis Drug Shows Promise Against Latent Bacteria

  Posted: September 15th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  A new study has shown that an investigational drug (R207910, currently in clinical trials against multi-drug resistant tuberculosis strains) is quite effective at killing latent bacteria. This revelation suggests that R207910 may lead to improved and shortened treatments for this globally prevalent disease.

• Economic And Health Implications Revealed In New Study On Rural HIV Care

  Posted: September 14th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  An Indiana University study found that HIV care providers in rural Indiana report significant stigma and discrimination in the rural medical referral system surrounding issues of HIV and substance abuse. Providers felt that these factors impeded their ability to offer quality care to their patients.

• Officials Call On HIV/AIDS Network In Botswana To Partner With Agriculture Ministry To Address Food Insecurity

  Posted: September 12th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  Officials at a recent seminar in Botswana's capital of Gaborone called on the Botswana Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS to partner with the Ministry of Agriculture to address food insufficiency, which hinders the country's fight against HIV/AIDS, the

• India's NACO To Distribute 1.5M Female Condoms To Sex Workers In Four States

  Posted: September 12th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  Approximately 1.5 million female condoms will be distributed and marketed to commercial sex workers in four Indian states this year in an attempt to provide women with a method of HIV prevention, IANS/Hindustan Times reports.

• Cambodia's Condom Campaign Faces Legal, Financial Issues, Health Official Says

  Posted: September 12th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  Cambodia's so-called 100% Condom Use campaign is being threatened by legal and financial issues, and the country could experience a resurgence of the disease, a health official said on Wednesday, AFP/Google.com reports.

• Newspapers Examine HIV/AIDS Among Youth In Michigan, Washington State

  Posted: September 12th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  HIV/AIDS cases among young people between ages 13 and 24 in Michigan has almost doubled from 5.7 cases per 100,000 people in 2002 to 9.7 cases per 100,000 people in 2006, according to data from the state's Department of Community Health, the Detroit News reports.

• HIV/AIDS Groups Send Letter To House Appropriators Calling For $200M Increase In Federal Funding For Prevention Programs

  Posted: September 12th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  A group of 70 HIV/AIDS advocacy and service organizations recently sent a letter to House Appropriations Chair David Obey (D-Wis.) and Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee ranking member James Walsh (R-N.Y.) to call for a $200 million increase in federal funding for prevention programs in fiscal year 2009,

• Hepatitis B Virus Infection: A Potential Approach

  Posted: September 12th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  Eukaryotic cells employ multiple strategies of checkpoint signaling and DNA repair mechanisms to monitor and repair damaged DNA. There are two branches in the checkpoint response pathway - ataxia telangiectasia-mutated (ATM) and ATM-Rad3-related (ATR). Many viruses are now known to interact with DNA damage sensing and repair machinery. These viruses have evolved tactics to eliminate, circumvent, or exploit various aspects of the DNA damage response of the host cell.

• New Course Helps People With HIV In Birmingham Become Experts In Their Condition

  Posted: September 12th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  On September 17, HIV and sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is launching a new course to help people with HIV become experts in their own condition. The course is to be held at THT in Birmingham throughout the year, each course lasts six weeks and sessions will be held every Wednesday from 1-3.30pm. The expert patient programme is an NHS self management course for anyone living with a long term health condition.

• Herpes Coinfection Induces Acyclovir To Inhibit HIV

  Posted: September 12th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  A surprising interaction may enable development of new HIV treatment strategies by exploiting infection with multiple pathogens. The research, published by Cell Press in the September 11th issue of the journal Cell Host and Microbe, demonstrates that a drug commonly used to treat herpes directly suppresses HIV in coinfected tissues and thus may be beneficial for patients infected with both viruses.

• CDC Publishes Detailed Analysis Of HIV Spread In US

  Posted: September 12th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has published a detailed analysis of HIV spread in the US following last month's revelation that the HIV epidemic is, and has been, worse than previously known, because the estimated number of new infections in 2006 was found to be about 56,300, which is 40 per cent higher than the 40,000 they thought it would be.

• Black Clergy 'Committed' To Addressing HIV/AIDS Epidemic In Community, Opinion Piece Says

  Posted: September 11th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  The Fort Worth Star-Telegram's "recent series on HIV/AIDS accuses [black clergy] of being unaware, inert and unconcerned about the AIDS pandemic" and did not note a "very important truth: The church is changing in response to this challenge, and people of faith are making a difference," Valda Jean Combs, a local pastor who heads the

• More Effective HIV/AIDS Prevention, Education Efforts Needed To Reach Black, Hispanic Girls, Women, Letter Says

  Posted: September 11th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  An "otherwise excellent" editorial recently published by the New York Times did not "mention the rapid spread of HIV among women and girls of color," Tracie Gardner, director of New York state policy and coordinator of the Women's Initiative To Stop HIV-New York at the

• Starpharma, SSL International Reach Marketing Agreement Over VivaGel Condoms

  Posted: September 11th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  The Australia-based Starpharma on Tuesday announced that its VivaGel-coated condom will be sold by SSL International, the owner of the Durex condom brand,

• Stigma Deters HIV-Positive People From Seeking Treatment, Panelist Says At Arkansas HIV/AIDS Minority Task Force Meeting

  Posted: September 11th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  The stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS in the Arkansas Delta prevents people living with the disease from coming forward and makes it difficult for the state to help the population, a University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences researcher told the Arkansas HIV/AIDS Minority Task Force earlier this week, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports.

• Irish Times Examines HIV/AIDS Efforts In Moldovan Region

  Posted: September 11th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  The Irish Times on Tuesday examined the efforts of a

• Depression Common Among Youth In Rwanda Orphaned By AIDS, Genocide, Survey Finds

  Posted: September 11th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  Depression is common among teenage and young adult orphans in Rwanda who head households and provide care for younger children, according to a survey conducted by researchers at Tulane University that was published last month in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, the New York Times reports.

• MSM Remain Most At-Risk Group For HIV In Beijing, Official Says

  Posted: September 11th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  Beijing's community of men who have sex with men are most at risk of contracting HIV, He Xiong, deputy director of the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said Friday, China Daily reports. According to He, 5% of MSM in the city are HIV-positive.

• Internews Enlists More Than 1,000 Journalists In Fight Against HIV/AIDS

  Posted: September 11th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  In some countries, lime juice is thought to ward off HIV/AIDS. In others, homosexuality is not publicly discussed.

• Symposium: How Do Race, Genetics And Health-Care Disparities Affect Spread Of HIV?

  Posted: September 11th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  WHAT: This half-day symposium, featuring speakers and panelists from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Cancer Institute, the UCLA AIDS Institute, and the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA, will address the ways in which genetics, race and health care disparities prevent or promote the acquisition of HIV.

• Black Clergy 'Committed' To Addressing HIV/AIDS Epidemic In Community, Opinion Piece Says

  Posted: September 10th, 2008, 3:00pm EDT

  The Fort Worth Star-Telegram's "recent series on HIV/AIDS accuses [black clergy] of being unaware, inert and unconcerned about the AIDS pandemic" and did not note a "very important truth: The church is changing in response to this challenge, and people of faith are making a difference," Valda Jean Combs, a local pastor who heads the

• Southern Sudan Government Passes Resolution To Bolster Fight Against HIV/AIDS

  Posted: September 10th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  The Council of Ministers in southern Sudan on Friday passed a resolution to streamline HIV/AIDS programs at all ministries and independent commissions, as well as at the state level, the Sudan Tribune reports. According to the Tribune, the resolution directed the institutions to establish their own HIV/AIDS departments or units to promote awareness campaigns among civil servants.

• Houston Chronicle Examines Baylor Pediatric HIV/AIDS Program In Burkina Faso

  Posted: September 10th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  The Houston Chronicle on Saturday examined the Baylor College of Medicine's International Pediatric AIDS Initiative in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso.

• Swaziland Holds Celebrations For King's Birthday, Independence; Advocates Call For Increased Social Spending, Other Reforms

  Posted: September 10th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  Swaziland on Saturday held celebrations for King Mswati's 40th birthday and the country's 40th year of independence -- an "extravaganza that contrasted sharply with the biting poverty" of the country -- the AP/Chicago Tribune reports. According to the AP/Tribune, 70% of the country lives below the poverty line.

• U.N. Secretary-General Calls For Increased Attention To Connection Between Literacy, Health, Including HIV/AIDS

  Posted: September 10th, 2008, 10:00am EDT

  United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on International Literacy Day on Monday called for increased attention to the connection between literacy and health, including HIV/AIDS issues, Xinhuanet reports. "Illiteracy has a direct impact on human health," Ban said in a statement, adding, "It prevents people from being able to read the instructions on a medicine bottle.

• Boston Globe Examines Imprisonment Of Two HIV/AIDS Physicians, Brothers In Iran

  Posted: September 10th, 2008, 9:00am EDT

  State Department officials and former students at Harvard University's School of Public Health believe Iranian physicians -- brothers Kamiar and Arash Alaei -- have been arrested and accused of using their work on HIV/AIDS worldwide to destabilize Iran's government, the

• Eastern Virginia Medical School Receives $100M Grant From USAID For Microbicide Research

  Posted: September 10th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  Eastern Virginia Medical School on Monday announced that it has received a $100 million grant from USAID for microbicide research through its CONRAD program, the Virginian-Pilot reports.

• Teens' Failure To Use Condoms Linked To Partner Disapproval, Fear Of Less Sexual Pleasure

  Posted: September 10th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  Approximately one in four teens in the United States will contract a sexually transmitted disease (STD), according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Experts believe a major contributing factor is the failure of many teens to use condoms consistently and routinely. Now a new study provides some insight into some of the factors that influence condom use among teenagers.

• Brazil Rejects Patent On An Essential AIDS Medicine

  Posted: September 10th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  The Brazilian Patent Office has rejected a patent application by Gilead on the drug tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF), in a move that could increase access to a key HIV/AIDS medicine across the developing world, says international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). "Securing wider access to TDF is absolutely crucial," said Dr. Tido von Schoen-Angerer, Executive Director of MSF's Access Campaign.

• Liberia's House Of Representatives Passes HIV/AIDS Confidentiality Act

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 3:00pm EDT

  Liberia's House of Representatives on Tuesday passed the Anti-HIV/AIDS Act, which would make it unlawful to disclose a person's HIV/AIDS status without that individual's prior consent, Liberia's News reports.

• Southeast Asian Health Officials To Meet In New Delhi To Examine HIV/AIDS, Other Health Issues

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  Health ministers and other officials from 11 Southeast Asian countries will meet on Monday in New Delhi for the World Health Organization's 61st Session of the Regional Committee for Southeast Asia, IANS/New Kerala reports.

• Researchers Identify Gene That Could Help Develop HIV/AIDS Vaccine

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  In an article published in the journal Science on Thursday, researchers announced that they have discovered a gene, called Apobec3, that might help in the development of an HIV/AIDS vaccine, Reuters Health reports. According to the researchers, Apobec3 helps mice develop antibodies against a virus that is similar to HIV.

• Study Identifies Proteins That Help Provide Immunity Against HIV Among Commercial Sex Workers In Kenya

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  In a study published Wednesday in the Journal of Proteome Research, researchers from the University of Manitoba, along with participants from Canada's National Microbiology Laboratory and the

• Campaign To End AIDS Plans March In Mississippi To Call For National Strategy To Combat HIV/AIDS

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  The Campaign To End AIDS has planned a march in Mississippi in an effort to call for a national strategy to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS, the AP/Biloxi Sun Herald reports. The march will begin Saturday in Jackson, Miss., and end Sept. 23 in Oxford, Miss.

• World Vision Report Finds Young Brides At Risk Of Contracting HIV/AIDS

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  A report recently released by World Vision has found that girls in developing countries who marry before age 18 -- whose numbers are expected to double to 100 million in the next 10 years -- are at an increased risk of HIV/AIDS, Reuters reports.

• Fatal Yeast Infections Make A Clean Getaway By Catching The Blood Cell Bus

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 8:00am EDT

  Yeast fungus cells that kill thousands of AIDS patients every year escape detection by our bodies' defences by hiding inside our own defence cells, and hitch a ride through our systems before attacking and spreading, scientists heard today (Tuesday 9 September 2008) at the Society for General Microbiology's Autumn meeting being held this week at Trinity College, Dublin.

• Over 1 In 4 South African Men Report Using Physical Violence Against Their Female Partners: CMAJ Study

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 7:00am EDT

  A first-ever, national study conducted in South Africa found that 27.5 percent of men who have ever been married or lived with a partner report perpetrating physical violence against their current or most recent female partner. This study, led by researchers from Harvard School of Public Health, Yale School of Public Health, and the University of Cape Town in South Africa, appears in the September 9, 2008, issue of CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal.

• New HIV Protection For Women

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  Vaginal rings, similar to those used for contraception and hormone replacement therapy, could protect women from sexually-transmitted HIV, according to research presented at the British Pharmaceutical Conference (BPC) in Manchester.

• Record $181 Million Grant To Evaluate Health, Poverty And Gender Programs Worldwide, Received By UNC

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has awarded the Carolina Population Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill up to $181 million to continue its MEASURE Evaluation project. The award is the largest ever received by UNC. The award funds the monitoring and evaluation of family planning, maternal and child health, nutrition and HIV/AIDS programs around the world.

• AIDS Research At Yale Boosted With $11 Million Continuation Grant

  Posted: September 9th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  Yale University's Center for Interdisciplinary Research on AIDS (CIRA) has received an $11 million grant to support another five years of HIV prevention and health services research. CIRA is one of eight HIV research centers in the United States funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

• Orlando Sentinel Profiles Home For Transgender People Living With HIV

  Posted: September 8th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  The Orlando Sentinel on Wednesday profiled the region's first residential home for transgender people living with HIV, which advocates say helps a "unique community that faces discrimination, ignorance and a disproportionate share" of HIV/AIDS cases. Keith Theriot, program manager for Orlando's

• Seattle Department Finds OraSure HIV Test To Be Less Accurate Than Label Claims

  Posted: September 8th, 2008, 1:00pm EDT

  A report by Public Health -- Seattle and King County in Washington state has found that testing with OraSure Technologies' OraQuick test provides less accurate results than the label claims, Bloomberg reports.

• Advocates In Swaziland Call For Democratic Reforms, Social Spending To Address Issues Such As HIV/AIDS

  Posted: September 8th, 2008, 12:00pm EDT

  About 1,000 people in the Swazi city of Manzini held a protest on Wednesday, calling for democratic reforms and increased social spending to address issues such as HIV/AIDS in the country, Reuters Africa reports.

• U.N. Report Finds Donors Providing Less Aid To Developing Nations

  Posted: September 8th, 2008, 11:00am EDT

  Despite rising food and energy prices and slowing economic growth worldwide, aid to developing nations has been on the decline, according to a United Nations report released on Thursday by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the New York Times reports. The report found that aid decreased by 8.4% in 2007, following a 4.

• National Institute On Drug Abuse Announces Recipients Of New Avant-Garde Award For Innovative HIV/AIDS Research

  Posted: September 8th, 2008, 5:00am EDT

  The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, announced the first three recipients of its new Avant-Garde Award. This award is intended to stimulate high-impact research that may lead to groundbreaking opportunities for the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS in drug abusers. Award recipients will receive $500,000 per year for five years to support their research.

• New 'Trick' Allows HIV To Overcome A Barrier To Infection

  Posted: September 8th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  Researchers have discovered a new 'trick' that allows HIV to overtake resting T cells that are normally highly resistant to HIV infection, according to a report in the September 5th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication. The binding of the virus to the surface of those cells sends a signal that breaks down the cells' internal skeleton, a structure that otherwise may present a significant barrier to infection.

• How STDs Increase The Risk Of Becoming Infected With HIV

  Posted: September 8th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  Individuals who have a sexually transmitted disease (e.g., genital herpes, gonorrhea, syphilis, and chlamydia) and women with yeast and bacterial vaginal infections have an increased risk of becoming infected with HIV if exposed to the virus through sexual contact. Although several explanations have been proposed, exactly how and why STDs have this effect has not been clear. Now, Teunis B.H.

• Journal Of Clinical Investigation Online Early Table Of Contents: Sept. 5, 2008

  Posted: September 8th, 2008, 4:00am EDT

  VIROLOGY: HIV-stimulated immune cells generate cells with immunosuppressive properties Nina Bhardwaj and colleagues, at New York University, have provided new insight into the role of human immune cells known as plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) in the anti-HIV immune response. When pDCs interact with HIV they become activated, secreting large amounts of the soluble factor IFN-alpha, which is a key component of the anti-HIV immune response.

• Women Who Binge Drink At Greater Risk Of Unsafe Sex And Sexually Transmitted Disease

  Posted: September 8th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  Binge drinking (5+ alcoholic beverages at one time) is associated with risky sexual behaviors. A new study is one of the few to examine this association by gender in an urban clinic for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Results show that binge drinking among women attending the clinic was linked to unsafe sexual practices - such as multiple partners and anal sex - and high rates of gonorrhea.

• Study Finds Neutral HIV Presentations More Likely To Be Considered Inviting

  Posted: September 7th, 2008, 2:00pm EDT

  A recent study by University of Illinois professor of psychology Dolores Albarracín and her colleagues at the University of Florida and the Alachua County Health Department in Florida found a method to increase enrollment among high-risk individuals in HIV prevention programs.

• Viral Process That Prepares Cells For HIV Infectionbiology Decoded By Researchers

  Posted: September 6th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  With the publication of a study led by Yuntao Wu, assistant professor in George Mason University's Department of Molecular and Microbiology, the medical community is one step closer to understanding how the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) attacks cells in the immune system. AIDS, which is caused by HIV, affected more than 33 million people worldwide in 2007 according to World Health Organization statistics. In the Sept.

• Apobec3 Gene And Neutralizing Antibody Response To Retrovirus Linked By Study

  Posted: September 6th, 2008, 3:00am EDT

  Scientists have uncovered new evidence that strengthens the link between a host-cell gene called Apobec3 and the production of neutralizing antibodies to retroviruses. Published in the Sept. 5 issue of Science, the finding adds a new dimension to the set of possible explanations for why most people who are infected with HIV do not make neutralizing antibodies that effectively fight the virus.

• HIV/AIDS, Human Rights Charter Proposed In Zimbabwe

  Posted: September 5th, 2008, 3:00pm EDT

  An HIV/AIDS and human rights charter that aims to protect and promote the rights of people living with the disease was proposed recently by the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, the ZimbabweStandard reports.

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