• Intermingling between populations may co

    From ScienceDaily@1:317/3 to All on Tue Mar 8 21:30:38 2022
    Intermingling between populations may contribute to HIV spread

    Date:
    March 8, 2022
    Source:
    eLife
    Summary:
    Sexual partnerships between individuals from different communities
    may help explain why some community-based HIV prevention efforts
    were moderately effective, shows a new study.



    FULL STORY ========================================================================== Sexual partnerships between individuals from different communities
    may help explain why some community-based HIV prevention efforts were moderately effective, shows a study published ineLife.


    ==========================================================================
    The findings may help explain the results of some community-based
    prevention studies and help scientists develop better ways to track and
    prevent the spread of HIV.

    Early identification and treatment of HIV can help prevent transmission
    of the virus. However, large studies of community-based universal HIV
    testing and treatment in sub-Saharan Africa have not been as effective
    as mathematical models predicted at curbing new infections.

    "To stem the spread of new HIV infections, we need to better understand patterns of HIV transmission in the region," says first author Lerato
    Magosi, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Center for Communicable
    Disease Dynamics at Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston,
    US.

    Magosi and colleagues set out to learn more about HIV transmission
    patterns in Botswana, Africa. The team genetically sequenced HIV samples collected from 5,114 individuals in 30 communities who participated in
    an HIV prevention trial. This trial, called the Botswana Combination
    Prevention Project or Ya Tsie trial, compared HIV transmission in
    communities that were randomised to receive universal HIV testing
    and linkage to treatment with communities that did not receive such
    an intervention.

    By identifying samples of HIV that were closely related genetically,
    the team was able to track how the virus spread within and between
    these communities.

    They found that most HIV transmission occurred between individuals who
    were about the same age and among individuals living in the same community
    or neighbouring communities, rather than distant communities. Viral
    spread from communities that did not receive the universal HIV testing
    and treatment intervention into communities that received the intervention
    was more likely to occur than vice versa.

    "Our results suggest that community-based HIV testing and treatment
    initiatives are powerful tools to reduce HIV transmission, but will need
    to be supported by targeted studies aimed at closing age and sex gaps
    in uptake of testing and treatment," Magosi explains.

    The authors suggest that genetic sequencing may be a valuable tool to help identify geographic HIV transmission patterns. They also recommend widely distributing HIV testing and treatment interventions in communities that
    are likely to intermingle. "Population mobility patterns are central to understanding HIV transmission dynamics and should be considered when
    designing and testing HIV control strategies," concludes senior author
    Marc Lipsitch, Professor of Epidemiology and Director of the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics.


    ========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by eLife. Note: Content may be edited
    for style and length.


    ========================================================================== Journal Reference:
    1. Lerato E Magosi, Yinfeng Zhang, Tanya Golubchik, Victor DeGruttola,
    Eric
    Tchetgen Tchetgen, Vladimir Novitsky, Janet Moore, Pam Bachanas,
    Tebogo Segolodi, Refeletswe Lebelonyane, Molly Pretorius Holme,
    Sikhulile Moyo, Joseph Makhema, Shahin Lockman, Christophe Fraser,
    Myron Max Essex, Marc Lipsitch. Deep-sequence phylogenetics to
    quantify patterns of HIV transmission in the context of a universal
    testing and treatment trial - BCPP/Ya Tsie trial. eLife, 2022;
    11 DOI: 10.7554/eLife.72657 ==========================================================================

    Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/03/220308115640.htm

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