: The University of the Witwatersrand's Wits HIV Research Group (WHRG) CTU is a well-established, multidisciplinary group of researchers active in HIV and TB prevention and treatment research. The group has a12 year track-record of NIAID funded Network research resulting in over 300 publications. The application is led by two experienced investigators, Dr. lan Sanne (MD), and Dr. Helen Rees (MD), who have complementary skills in HIV treatment and prevention. The leadership of the WHRG CTU has made significant scientific contributions to the research agenda of the NIAID-funded networks, and major contributions to HIV prevention and treatment public health policy and program implementation in South Africa and internationally. In this continuation application, WHRG presents a strong CTU that builds on the effective management, quality assurance and research infrastructure already in place, and expands the scope of the research at three clinical research sites (CRS) in Johannesburg: Wits Helen Joseph Hospital CRS (Wits HJH CRS), proposes to work with the Network on Therapeutics for HIV and HIV-associated Infections in Adults and the Network for Integrated Prevention Strategies; Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute CRS (WRHI CRS), proposes to work with the Network on Microbicides to Prevent HIV Infection, the Network on Integrated Strategies to Prevent HIV Infection, and the Network on HIV/AIDS and HIV-associated Infections in Pediatric and Maternal Populations. Sizwe Hospital CRS, an in-patient facility for MDRTB proposed to work with the Network on Therapeutics for HIV/AIDS and HIV associated infections in Adults to study therapeutics for MDRTB. Laboratory support provided by CLS and BARC, both active laboratories in the NIAID-funded Networks. This application describes Grants Management, Pharmacy, Data Management, Site Management, Quality Assurance and scientific expertise. The WHRG is an outstanding performer within the DAIDS CTU establishment. Wits HJH CRS is the highest performing site of the ACTG Network. WRHI has a strong track record in the NIAID Networks and has conducted numerous HIV prevention and treatment studies in adults and children. The proposed Sizwe CRS has completed FDA IND studies in novel drugs for MDR-TB. The WHRG has significant access to diverse HIV infected and uninfected pediatric and adult populations, making it ideally suited to respond to the existing and emerging priorities of the new networks. This application has significant institutional support from both Wits University and the Department of Health.

Public Health Relevance

Africa is at the epicenter of the HIV and Tuberculosis (TB) epidemics. In a country of 51.7 million people, adult HIV prevalence is 18%, with nearly 6 million people living with HIV, the largest number in any country worldwide. The TB epidemic also continues unabated, with an estimated 948 new cases of TB annually per 100,000 population. At the epicentre of the HIV epidemic, prevention and treatment research will lead to a change in the impact of HIV and TB on mortality and morbidity in South Africa.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Type
Research Project with Complex Structure Cooperative Agreement (UM1)
Project #
5UM1AI069463-13
Application #
9607996
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZAI1)
Program Officer
Coates, Cindy Karen
Project Start
2007-03-15
Project End
2020-11-30
Budget Start
2018-12-01
Budget End
2019-11-30
Support Year
13
Fiscal Year
2019
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Wits Health Consortium (Pty), Ltd
Department
Type
DUNS #
639391218
City
Parktown
State
Country
South Africa
Zip Code
2193
Robertson, K; Oladeji, B; Jiang, H et al. (2018) HIV-1 and TB Co-infection in Multinational Resource Limited Settings: Increased neurological dysfunction. Clin Infect Dis :
Laborde, Nicole D; Pleasants, Elizabeth; Reddy, Krishnaveni et al. (2018) Impact of the Dapivirine Vaginal Ring on Sexual Experiences and Intimate Partnerships of Women in an HIV Prevention Clinical Trial: Managing Ring Detection and Hot Sex. AIDS Behav 22:437-446
Balkus, Jennifer E; Brown, Elizabeth R; Palanee-Phillips, Thesla et al. (2018) Performance of a Validated Risk Score to Predict HIV-1 Acquisition Among African Women Participating in a Trial of the Dapivirine Vaginal Ring. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr 77:e8-e10
Shivakoti, Rupak; Gupte, Nikhil; Tripathy, Srikanth et al. (2018) Inflammation and micronutrient biomarkers predict clinical HIV treatment failure and incident active TB in HIV-infected adults: a case-control study. BMC Med 16:161
Tracy, LaRee A; Struble, Kimberly; Firnhaber, Cynthia et al. (2018) Age Differences by Sex in Antiretroviral-Naïve Participants: Pooled Analysis from Randomized Clinical Trials. J Assoc Nurses AIDS Care 29:371-382
Shivakoti, Rupak; Ewald, Erin R; Gupte, Nikhil et al. (2018) Effect of baseline micronutrient and inflammation status on CD4 recovery post-cART initiation in the multinational PEARLS trial. Clin Nutr :
Torres, Thiago S; Harrison, Linda J; La Rosa, Alberto M et al. (2018) Quality of life improvement in resource-limited settings after one year of second-line antiretroviral therapy use among adult men and women. AIDS 32:583-593
Robertson, Kevin R; Jiang, Hongyu; Kumwenda, Johnstone et al. (2018) HIV Associated Neurocognitive Impairment in Diverse Resource Limited Settings. Clin Infect Dis :
Montgomery, Elizabeth T; Stadler, Jonathan; Naidoo, Sarita et al. (2018) Reasons for nonadherence to the dapivirine vaginal ring: narrative explanations of objective drug-level results. AIDS 32:1517-1525
Chernoff, Miriam C; Laughton, Barbara; Ratswana, Mmule et al. (2018) Validity of Neuropsychological Testing in Young African Children Affected by HIV. J Pediatr Infect Dis 13:185-201

Showing the most recent 10 out of 107 publications