Antiretroviral therapies (ART) stop HIV replication in its tracks, allowing people with HIV to live relatively normal lives. However, despite these treatments, some HIV still lingers inside cells in a dormant state known as “latency.” If ART is discontinued, HIV will awaken from its dormant state, begin to replicate, and cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). To create a cure, researchers have been attempting to drive HIV out of latency and target it for destruction. A new clinical trial led by clinicians and researchers at the UNC School of Medicine suggests that a combination of the drug vorinostat and immunotherapy can coax HIV-infected cells out of latency and attack them.
The immunotherapy was provided by a team at the George Washington University, who took white blood cells from the study participants and expanded them in the laboratory, augmenting the cells' ability to attack HIV-infected cells, before re-infusion at the NC TraCS Clinical and Translational Research Center (CTRC) which provided space and skilled nursing staff for the treatment and follow-up visits for the trial.
Catalina Berenblum Tobi, member of the NC TraCS Equity in Research Community & Advisory Board publishes qualitative research outlining how metaphors used when explaining inflammatory bowel disease affect young patients’ perceptions of illness and healing.
The Research Advisory Council is currently accepting applications for five programs. New March submission deadlines have been added for Promoting Clinical Research in Southeastern North Carolina awards and Promoting Health Equity in Southeastern North Carolina awards.
The UNC Office of Human Research Ethics and the Institutional Review Board are offering office hours twice a month on Wednesdays in 15-minute blocks from 9–11 a.m., currently scheduled through June 2024. Both virtual and in-person sessions are available depending on date.
TraCS is excited to announce the addition of five new members to the Equity in Research Community and Patient Advisory Board (CPAB). The NC TraCS CPAB promotes and supports equity in research at UNC-Chapel Hill through community engagement, inclusive science, and diverse recruitment.
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