China 
Africa 
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Role of Microfluidics-Based Point-of-Care Testing (POCT) for Clinical Applications
Published in Raju Khan, Chetna Dhand, S. K. Sanghi, Shabi Thankaraj Salammal, A. B. P. Mishra, Advanced Microfluidics-Based Point-of-Care Diagnostics, 2022
Arpana Parihar, Dipesh Singh Parihar, Pushpesh Ranjan, Raju Khan
The WHO has stressed the importance of developing POC devices for HIV/AIDS diagnosis and monitoring in resource-constrained areas [35]. These POC devices have the potential to be designed as an accurate, low-cost, and disposable platform for counting CD4+ T-lymphocytes and HIV viral load [36–38]. The POC device must detect and count fewer than 200 CD4+ cells per liter of blood and 400 copies of HIV per liter of blood for clinical applications [39]. Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) aims to suppress virus replication, slowing the progression of HIV infection to disease (AIDS) and increasing the number of CD4+ T-lymphocytes [35,40]. As a result, HIV is monitored using CD4+ T-lymphocyte counting and viral load quantification. Traditional techniques, such as costly flow cytometry and quantitative PCR, have many drawbacks, including a long diagnostic time and the requirement for a well-trained technician [41].
Role of Dendrimers in the Development of New Dendritic Cells Immunotherapies Against HIV-1 Infection
Published in Anne-Marie Caminade, Cédric-Olivier Turrin, Jean-Pierre Majoral, Phosphorus Dendrimers in Biology and Nanomedicine, 2018
Rosa Reguera, Joao Rodrigues, Jose Correa, M. Angeles Munoz-Fernandez
In HIV-1 vaccination, various approaches such as HIV-derived peptides, viral proteins, DNA, RNA, or inactivate viral particles have been used to improve antigen loading in DCs and to enhance immune responses [22–27]. In this context, the most successful results in HIV DC-based clinical trials have been those using complete inactivated viruses. In a non-randomized study with non-treated HIV-1 infected individuals, Lu et al. showed that 8 out of 18 HIV-1 subjects treated with autologous AT-2 inactivated virus pulsed-DCs had a reduction of more than 90% in the viral load [28]. In addition, in randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trials carried out by Garcia et al., with cART treated and untreated HIV-1 subjects and involving heat-inactivated autologous virus pulsed-DCs, a modest significant control of plasma viral load was achieved in immunized recipients and was associated with a consistent increase in HIV-1-specific T-cell responses [21].
Aptamers as Tools for Targeted Drug Delivery
Published in Rakesh N. Veedu, Aptamers, 2017
An anti-gp 120 aptamer–siRNA chimera was developed against cells expressing HIV-1 gp 120 [100]. Both the aptamer and the siRNA (anti-tat/rev siRNA) had anti-HIV activity, and the authors report that this dual functioning chimera allowed selective delivery into the target cells and inhibited HIV replication and spread [100]. A targeted approach using aptamer for combinatorial delivery of antiviral and host dicer substrate siRNA (DsiRNA) was tested for treatment in HIV infection [102]. In this facile strategy, 3′ 7-carbon linker (7C3) bound to a 16-nucleotide 2′ OMe/2′ Fl GC rich bridge was used to aid the binding of various siRNAs with the targeting aptamer. An HIV-1 gp120 aptamer targeted the DsiRNAs, and the in vivo antiviral activity was studied in a humanized mouse model. The results report the delivery of siRNA and long-term suppression of HIV-1 viral load [102]. An RNA aptamer–siRNA chimera was developed as a combination approach for the treatment of HIV infection [58]. The HIV-1 envelope protein-targeting aptamer was attached to the siRNA targeting the viral RNA through a linker. The antiviral effect was tested in the humanized Rag2-/-gc-/- (RAG-hu) mouse model, which mimics the HIV-1 replication and CD4+ T-cell depletion in humans. This nontoxic therapeutic approach reports efficient viral suppression by the dual anti-HIV activity offered by the aptamer and the siRNA [58].
An indirect prioritization approach to optimizing sample referral networks for HIV early infant diagnosis
Published in IISE Transactions, 2022
Reut Noham, Michal Tzur, Dan Yamin
PCR-based testing is an essential tool not only for diagnosing HIV-exposed infants, but also for monitoring HIV patients. The latter is achieved by a PCR HIV Viral Load (VL) test that measures the concentration of the virus in the blood of patients who have already been diagnosed with HIV. VL testing helps monitor disease progression and indicates when a drug regime is failing (Günthard et al., 2016), which provides important additional information for patient management. PCR testing for both EID and VL requires significant investment in the logistical infrastructure, equipment, reagents, and trained personnel.