Antiretroviral drug not effective for viral suppression

Researchers conducted a randomized double-blind study of the effectiveness of an HIV vaccine and has found it to be ineffective in suppressing the virus. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) drugs allow people infected with the virus to live an almost normal existence.
Injecting patients first with a HIV multi-antigen and a DNA plasmid encoding human interleukin proteins and then following up with a booster containing a viral vector. The idea behind this approach is to nudge the immune system into learning how to combat the virus so that ART drugs are no longer needed.

The research team conducted a study designed to test the effectiveness of the vaccine. The study consisted of enlisting the assistance of early-stage patients with HIV infections who were already being treated with ARTs and assigning them to two groups-some of the patients got the vaccine while others got a placebo. Injections took place at 0, 4, 12, 24, 36 and 48 weeks. ART drug administration was halted for all of the volunteers starting at week 56 and lasting until week 72.

All of the volunteers were tested regularly throughout the study for viral loads, a measure of how well the body, along with ARTs and the vaccine, was working to suppress the virus. The researchers report that they found no measurable increase in effectiveness in any of the volunteers who were given the vaccine. Some of the volunteers who had received the placebo had lower than normal viral loads for a short time. This showed that if the study had not been conducted with placebos, the results would have showed that the vaccine had worked to a limited extent.
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Anti-malarial drug for Zika virus treatment

Medication used to prevent and treat malaria may also be effective for Zika virus. The drug, called chloroquine, has a long history of safe use during pregnancy. Zika causes mild flu-like symptoms. But in pregnant women, the virus can cause serious birth defects in babies-including microcephaly-a neurological condition in which newborns have unusually small heads and fail to develop properly.

Presently, there is no treatment or way to reverse the condition. The latest research suggests the anti-malaria drug chloroquine may be an effective drug to treat and prevent Zika infections. Reseachers examined the effect of chloroquine in human brain organoids and pregnant mice infected with the virus, and found the drug markedly reduced the amount of Zika virus in maternal blood and neural progenitor cells in the fetal brain.

Pregnant mice received chloroquine through drinking water in dosages equivalent to acceptable levels used in humans. Although chloroquine did not completely clear Zika from infected mice it did reduce the viral load, suggesting it could limit the neurological damage found in newborns infected by the virus.
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Early Antiretroviral therapy linked with bone loss

A new study has discovered that early antiretroviral drugs ART causes bone loss compared with deferring ART.
Researchers examined HIV patients that used ART early and those that delayed treatment.

They discovered that early ART prevents HIV transmission but causes bone loss. Early treatment is also associated with increased bone loss of about 2-4%, this rate of bone loss will slow down after two years of treatment.

Antiretroviral drugs may cause broken bones as you get older, you can reduce the risk by engaging in simple exercise like walking and running.

Presently their is no cure for HIV, if you stop taking your drugs because of side effects of ART, your viral load will be high and the virus may become resistance to drug, you can manage the condition by taking calcium and vitamin D supplement to prevent osteoporosis.

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Neurocognitive decline and HIV virus

Neurocognitive changes like memory loss, loss of verbal fluency, poor concentration and inability to absorb new information or make complex decisions are associated with aging.

 HIV patients are at the risk of neurocognitive decline, even when they are taking effective antiretroviral therapy and have an undetectable viral load.

 Researchers examined 191 HIV-positive adults, all with a controlled viral load.
They were monitored for three years, at six month intervals for neurocognitive function test.

The result shows different stages of neurocognitive functions
Normal- Normal mental function.
Subclinical- Minimal symptoms of cognitive dysfunction.
Mild- Evidence of functional intellectual.
Moderate- Cannot work or maintain the more demanding aspects of daily life.
Severe- Major intellectual incapacity.
End Stage- Nearly vegetative.

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