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At the 2021 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections, there was a focus on progress toward hepatitis C virus (HCV) microelimination in geographic regions and targeted populations. HCV elimination is facilitated by well-tolerated, highly effective HCV treatment that requires essentially no on-treatment monitoring in most patients, as highlighted by the MINMON (Minimal Monitoring Study or A5360) study, and that should be increasingly available to children with new data supporting feasible treatment in younger patients. Challenges to HCV elimination include HCV reinfection via sexual exposure in men who have sex with men (MSM) and continued barriers to diagnosis and access to HCV treatment. Hepatitis B virus (HBV) suppression may take years in HIV/HBV-coinfected patients. This may have important consequences as the risk for hepatocellular carcinoma was associated in a dose-dependent manner with HBV viral load and was lowest in those with sustained undetectable HBV, highlighting the need for HBV DNA monitoring during therapy. Public health programs should prioritize improving hepatitis A and hepatitis B vaccination in at-risk populations, including people with HIV, as vaccinations rates for these preventable diseases continue to be suboptimal in many settings. Fatty liver disease, heavy alcohol use, antiretroviral therapy, and COVID-19 infection were also examined as drivers of hepatic disease in HIV infection.

INTRODUCTION: Pangenotypic, all-oral direct-acting antivirals, such as glecaprevir/pibrentasvir (G/P), are recommended for treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Concerns exist about the impact on efficacy in patients with suboptimal adherence, particularly with shorter treatment durations. These post hoc analyses evaluated adherence (based on pill count) in patients prescribed 8- or 12-week G/P, the impact of nonadherence on sustained virologic response at post-treatment week 12 (SVR12), factors associated with nonadherence, and efficacy in patients interrupting G/P treatment. METHODS: Data were pooled from 10 phase 3 clinical trials of treatment-naive patients with HCV genotype 1-6 without cirrhosis/with compensated cirrhosis (treatment adherence analysis) and 13 phase 3 clinical trials of all patients with HCV (interruption analysis). RESULTS: Among 2,149 patients included, overall mean adherence was 99.4%. Over the treatment duration, adherence decreased (weeks 0-4: 100%; weeks 5-8: 98.3%; and weeks 9-12: 97.1%) and the percentage of patients with >= 80% or >= 90% adherence declined. SVR12 rate in the intention-to-treat (ITT) population was 97.7% (modified ITT SVR12 99.3%) and remained high in nonadherent patients in the modified ITT population (= 80% adherence. Among 2,902 patients in the interruption analysis, 33 (1.1%) had a G/P treatment interruption of >= 1 day, with an SVR12 rate of 93.9% (31/33). No virologic failures occurred. DISCUSSION: These findings support the impact of treatment duration on adherence rates and further reinforce the concept of “treatment forgiveness” with direct-acting antivirals.

At the 2019 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI), there was a major focus on hepatitis C virus (HCV) elimination and improving each component of the hepatitis C care cascade. Many interventions showed promising improvements in diagnosis and linkage to care. Settings with robust access to direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) continue to demonstrate the role of HCV treatment as prevention. However, substantial barriers to accessing curative therapy remain. Reinfection after treatment presents an important barrier to elimination, particularly in some populations of men who have sex with men (MSM). MSM without HIV infection are at an elevated risk for sexual acquisition of HCV, and several studies reported HCV rates that were as high as those seen in MSM living with HIV. There was also a focus on HCV and HBV in pregnant women. Rates of HCV infection in women of child-bearing potential have increased, making prenatal diagnosis a priority. In the first study of HCV treatment during pregnancy, sofosbuvir/ledipasvir started at 28 weeks of gestation led to cure in 8 pregnant women. Hepatitis B virus (HBV)-active antiretrovirals are generally effective in suppressing HBV but have low rates of surface antigen loss despite long term treatment. Initial results from novel laboratory assessments of intrahepatic HBV viral infection events were presented, hopefully paving the way for more effective HBV treatment strategies to control and potentially cure HBV.

The remarkable advances in interferon-sparing, all-oral hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment were a highlight of the 2014 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI). The backbone of the nucleotide inhibitor sofosbuvir and the nonstructural protein 5A (NS5A) inhibitor ledipasvir with an additional third agent (HCV protease inhibitor or HCV nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor) led to a sustained virologic response (SVR) rate 12 weeks after cessation of treatment of 95% to 100% after only 6 weeks of treatment. These results demonstrate the potential of combination directacting antiviral (DAA) therapy for abbreviated, well-tolerated, and highly effective HCV treatment. Two triple-drug regimens that comprised 12 weeks of an NS5A inhibitor, an HCV protease inhibitor, and a nonnucleoside inhibitor also resulted in SVRs of more than 90% in patients with HCV genotype 1. HIV coinfection does not appear to negatively impact response to DAA-based HCV therapy, as evidenced by similar response rates in HIV/HCV-coinfected patients compared with HCV-monoinfected patients receiving interferon-sparing or -containing regimens. There was continued emphasis at CROI 2014 on non-AIDS complications of HIV infection, specifically cardiovascular disease, renal insufficiency, and bone and endocrine disorders that persist among patients with treated HIV disease and contribute to morbidity and mortality. Finally, new data on novel drugs and combinations for treatment of tuberculosis (TB), patient outcomes using new rapid TB diagnostics, and a short-course TB prevention strategy were presented.

High cure rates with all-oral regimens for patients with HIV/hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection were a highlight of the 2015 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. Twelve weeks of sofosbuvir and daclatasvir led to sustained virologic response (SVR) rates of 96% in treatment-nave and 98% in treatment-experienced HCV genotype 1–infected patients. Twelve weeks of sofosbuvir plus ledipasvir had similar results, with SVR rates of 95% in treatment-naive and 96% in treatment-experienced patients. Patients with cirrhosis were included in both trials and attained SVR rates of 92% to 94%. Real-world performance of sofosbuvir and simeprevir resulted in SVR rates similar to those attained in clinical trials. Identifying HCV infection, linking patients to care, reducing barriers to drug access, and ensuring adherence will be key to realizing the enormous potential of high cure rates with interferon alfa–free therapies. Preventing reinfection after cure will be of particular importance in the HIV-infected population, which was highly impacted by reinfection rates of more than 20% during 5 years of follow-up in a meta-analysis.

At the 2016 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in Boston, Massachusetts, hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection remained a major theme in the context of HIV-associated liver disease, although other causes of liver disease garnered increased attention, including fatty liver disease, hepatitis B, and the impact of HIV disease itself on the liver. Although no data from phase III studies of HCV direct-acting antiviral (DAA) drugs for the treatment of HIV/HCV coinfection were presented at CROI 2016, a broad range of HCV DAA-related topics were presented, including accumulating experience with real-world performance of DAA-based regimens outside of clinical trials, drug interactions between DAA and antiretroviral drugs, treatment of acute HCV infection, and retreatment of individuals whose DAA-based regimens failed and those in whom resistance to DAA drugs emerged. A summary of select abstracts from CROI 2016 is presented, including discussion of clinical relevance where appropriate and areas for future research.

Rationale and objectivesEarlier initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) in HIV-tuberculosis (TB) is associated with increased immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS). The severity, frequency, and complications of TB IRIS were evaluated in A5221, a randomized trial of earlier ART (within 2 weeks after TB treatment initiation) vs. later ART (8-12 weeks after TB treatment) in HIV-infected patients starting TB treatment.Methods and measurementsIn 806 participants, TB IRIS was defined using published clinical criteria. Cases were classified as severe (hospitalization/death), moderate (corticosteroid use/invasive procedure), or mild (no hospitalization/procedures/steroids). Fisher exact, Wilcoxon, and log-rank tests were used for comparisons.Main resultsTB IRIS occurred in 61 (7.6%) patients: 10.4% in earlier vs. 4.7% in later ART, 11.5% with CD4

Studies on the efficacy of and drug interactions with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) in HCV/ HIV coinfection were a highlight of the 2012 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. The addition of an HCV protease inhibitor (PI) to pegylated interferon alfa/ribavirin increased HCV cure rates by 30% to 35% in HCV genotype 1 treatment-naive HIV-coinfected patients, an increase similar to that observed in HIV-uninfected HCV-infected patients. Drug interactions with antiretrovirals can be complex, and DAAs are recommended for use only with antiretroviral drugs for which pharmacokinetic data are available. Further drug interaction and clinical data are needed to ensure the safe coadminstration of DAAs with antiretroviral therapy. The conference placed continued emphasis on pathogenesis, management, and prevention of the long-term complications of HIV disease and its therapies, including cardiovascular disease, lipodystrophy, renal disease, alterations in bone metabolism, and vitamin D deficiency, along with a growing focus on biomarkers to predict development of end-organ disease. HIV has increasingly been recognized as a disease of accelerated aging, manifested by increased progression of vascular disease, cellular markers of aging, and a heightened risk of certain non-AIDS-defining malignancies. This year's conference also highlighted data on diagnosis, prevention, and complications of tuberculosis coinfection as well as the treatment and prevention of coinfections that are common with HIV, including cryptococcal meningitis, influenza, and varicella zoster.

Background: Globally, over one-third of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) disease diagnoses are made based on clinical criteria after a negative diagnostic test result. Understanding factors associated with clinicians' decisions to initiate treatment for individuals with negative test results is critical for predicting the potential impact of new diagnostics., Methods: We performed a systematic review and individual patient data meta-analysis using studies conducted between January/2010 and December/2022 (PROSPERO: CRD42022287613). We included trials or cohort studies that enrolled individuals evaluated for TB in routine settings. In these studies participants were evaluated based on clinical examination and routinely-used diagnostics, and were followed for ≥1 week after the initial test result. We used hierarchical Bayesian logistic regression to identify factors associated with treatment initiation following a negative result on an initial bacteriological test (e.g., sputum smear microscopy, Xpert MTB/RIF)., Findings: Multiple factors were positively associated with treatment initiation: male sex [adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR) 1.61 (1.31-1.95)], history of prior TB [aOR 1.36 (1.06-1.73)], reported cough [aOR 4.62 (3.42-6.27)], reported night sweats [aOR 1.50 (1.21-1.90)], and having HIV infection but not on ART [aOR 1.68 (1.23-2.32)]. Treatment initiation was substantially less likely for individuals testing negative with Xpert [aOR 0.77 (0.62-0.96)] compared to smear microscopy and declined in more recent years., Interpretation: Multiple factors influenced decisions to initiate TB treatment despite negative test results. Clinicians were substantially less likely to treat in the absence of a positive test result when using more sensitive, PCR-based diagnostics.

In this brief report, we compare the magnitude and durability of the serologic response of one versus two doses (separated by 56 days) of a variant vaccine (Moderna mRNA-1273 Beta/Omicron BA.1 bivalent vaccine) in adults.

In a randomized clinical trial, we compare early neutralizing antibody responses after boosting with bivalent SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccines based on either BA.1 or BA.4/BA.5 Omicron spike protein combined with wildtype spike. Responses against SARS-CoV-2 variants exhibited the greatest reduction in titers against currently circulating Omicron subvariants for both bivalent vaccines., Competing Interests: EJA has received grants from Pfizer, Moderna, Janssen, GSK, Sanofi, Micron, and Regeneron through institution as well as consulting fees from Pfizer, Janssen, Moderna, and Sanofi. EJA serves on safety/advisory boards for Sanofi, ACI Clinical/WCG and Kentucky Bioscience, Inc.ARB has received research support from NIH-NIAID, grants from Pfizer, Cyanvac, and Merck as well as consulting fees from Janssen and GSK.LRB has received grants from Wellcome Trust, Gates Foundation, NIH/Harvard Medical School through institution. Serves as member of DSMB for NIH and AMDAC for FDA. Dr Baden is involved in HIV and SARS-CoV-2 vaccine clinical trials conducted in collaboration with the NIH, HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN), Covid Vaccine Prevention Network (CoVPN), International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), Crucell/Janssen, Moderna, Military HIV Research Program (MHRP), the Gates Foundation, and Harvard Medical School.DJD has received a contract from Leidos Biomedical research to conduct the clinical trial through institution.ARF has received grants from Janssen, Pfizer, Merck, BioFire Diagnostics, and CyanVac through institution, consultant fees from Arrowhead and Icosavax, and honoraria as a speaker from Moderna and GlaxoSmithKline. ARF also serves on safety/advisory boards for Novavax and received travel/meeting support from GlaxoSmithKline.SEF has received f unding from Leidos to Saint Louis University to conduct Protocol DMID22-0004.DNF has as a contract from CDC and is the site PI for clinical trials from Gilead, Regeneron and MetroBiotech LLC. She is the PI on one investigator-initiated award from Gilead and the co-PI on another investigator initiated award from Gilead. DNF served on an HBV Advisory board for Gilead in 2021 and received payment for expert testimony not related to COVID in 2022.PAG has received funding for COVAIL clinical trial. PAG has also received consulting fees from Janssen Vaccines.LCI has received support for the present manuscript from NIH-NIAID/DMID, Moderna, Pfizer, and Sanofi. LCI has also received grants from GSK, Merck, Sharpe & Dohme Corp, CDC, Novavax, AHRQ, and NIH/NLM/NIMHD as well as consulting fees from Moderna, CDC, and Pediatric Emergency Medicine Associates, LLC. LCI has received honoraria as a speaker from American Academy of Pediatrics, Rockefeller University, and American Academy of Pediatrics- Georgia Chapter. LCI Serves on Data Safety Monitoring for NIH-Phase 2 Vaccine Trial for Monkeypox, Moderna Scientific Advisory Board- North America, and CoVID-19 Task Force, Georgia. LCI has a leadership role in the Pediatric Infectious Disease Society and serves as board member on the Emory University- Pediatric and Reproductive Environmental Health Scholars-Southeastern, the Center for Spatial Analytics of the Georgia Institute of Technology, and the American Academy of Pediatrics (Executive Board for Section on Infectious Diseases). LCI has received travel/meeting support from the American Academy of Pediatrics and Moderna.LAJ has received funding from NIH for support for this study, funding from Pfizer to support a clinical trial and contract funding for research support from the CDC and the NIH, all through institution. LAJ also reports unpaid participation on Data Safety Monitoring Boards for NIH funded clinical trials.SJL has received NIH grants through institution.AFL has received grants from Merck, Gilead and, Viiv through institution as well as consulting fees from Vir Biotechnology. AFL has also received travel support from Merck to attend a required investigator meeting, testing kits and supplies to support research study from Hologic, and medication donated by Mayne Pharma to support research study.MM has received funding from Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases for contract # 75N93021C00012.DCM has received funding from NIH/75N93019C00050-21A: CIVICS A- Option 21A-DMID Trials of COVID-19 Vaccines.JM has received funding from Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, contract # 75N93021C00012.AN has received support from NIH-NIAID, CEIRR (Centers of Excellence for Influenza Research and Response) and Gates Cambridge Trust as well as grants from NIH-NIAID R01.RMN has received grants from Moderna and Janssen and travel/meeting support from Moderna.CMP has received funding from NIAID UM1AI148684.RMP has received funding from NIH DMID COVAIL as well as grants from Janssen, Moderna and NIH through institution.NGR has received research grants from Pfizer, Merck, Sanofi, Quidel and Lilly through institution, consulting fees from Krog, honoraria as speaker for Virology education, and travel support from Sanofi. NGR serves on safety committees for ICON and EMMES and is a member of the Moderna Advisory board.DJS has received support from NIH-NIAID CEIRR , grants from NIH-NIAID R01, and travel support from NIH-NIAID CEIRR for NIH-related meetings.KT has received funding from Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases contract # 75N93021C00012.EBW has received funding from Leidos Biomedical Research AGREEMENT NO. 22CTA-DM0009 as well as grants from Pfizer, Moderna, Sequiris, Clinetic, and Najit Technologies, with payments made to institution. EBW has also received honoraria as a speaker from College of Diplomates of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry, consulting fees from Iliad Biotechnologies, and travel/meeting support from the American Academy of Pediatrics. EBW serves as member of Vaxcyte Scientific Advisory board.PLW has received subcontract funding from NIH for this study as well as NIH grant funding and contract funding from Pfizer through University of Iowa. PLW has also received consulting fees from Pfizer and serves on safety/advisory board for Emmes Corporation.The following group has no conflicts to declare: RLA, TMB, SMM, MB, MKM, JHB , SC, ACK, CL, PCR, RR, JAW.

Background: Protection from SARS-CoV-2 vaccines wanes over time and is compounded by emerging variants including Omicron subvariants. This study evaluated safety and immunogenicity of SARS-CoV-2 variant vaccines., Methods: This phase 2 open-label, randomized trial enrolled healthy adults previously vaccinated with a SARS-CoV-2 primary series and a single boost. Eligible participants were randomized to one of six Moderna COVID19 mRNA vaccine arms (50µg dose): Prototype (mRNA-1273), Omicron BA.1+Beta (1 or 2 doses), Omicron BA.1+Delta, Omicron BA.1 monovalent, and Omicron BA.1+Prototype. Neutralization antibody titers (ID 50 ) were assessed for D614G, Delta, Beta and Omicron BA.1 variants and Omicron BA.2.12.1 and BA.4/BA.5 subvariants 15 days after vaccination., Results: From March 30 to May 6, 2022, 597 participants were randomized and vaccinated. Median age was 53 years, and 20% had a prior SARS-CoV-2 infection. All vaccines were safe and well-tolerated. Day 15 geometric mean titers (GMT) against D614G were similar across arms and ages, and higher with prior infection. For uninfected participants, Day 15 Omicron BA.1 GMTs were similar across Omicron-containing vaccine arms (3724-4561) and higher than Prototype (1,997 [95%CI:1,482-2,692]). The Omicron BA.1 monovalent and Omicron BA.1+Prototype vaccines induced a geometric mean ratio (GMR) to Prototype for Omicron BA.1 of 2.03 (97.5%CI:1.37-3.00) and 1.56 (97.5%CI:1.06-2.31), respectively. A subset of samples from uninfected participants in four arms were also tested in a different laboratory at Day 15 for neutralizing antibody titers to D614G and Omicron subvariants BA.1, BA.2.12.2 and BA.4/BA.5. Omicron BA.4/BA.5 GMTs were approximately one third BA.1 GMTs (Prototype 517 [95%CI:324-826] vs. 1503 [95%CI:949-2381]; Omicron BA.1+Beta 628 [95%CI:367-1,074] vs. 2125 [95%CI:1139-3965]; Omicron BA.1+Delta 765 [95%CI:443-1,322] vs. 2242 [95%CI:1218-4128] and Omicron BA.1+Prototype 635 [95%CI:447-903] vs. 1972 [95%CI:1337-2907)., Conclusions: Higher Omicron BA.1 titers were observed with Omicron-containing vaccines compared to Prototype vaccine and titers against Omicron BA.4/BA.5 were lower than against BA.1 for all candidate vaccines., Clinicaltrialsgov: NCT05289037.

Studies on new direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) for hepatitis C virus infection were a focus of the 2011 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. Although the majority of the data were from HIV-uninfected patients, much-needed work has begun to characterize DAA and antiretroviral drug interactions and to evaluate performance of DAAs for HIV/HCV-coinfected patients. There was continued emphasis on pathogenesis, management, and prevention of the long-term complications of HIV disease and its therapies, including cardiovascular disease, lipodystrophy, renal disease, and alterations in bone metabolism. Malignancies, particularly non-AIDS-defining cancers, have emerged as a leading complication and cause of death in HIV infection that may not be fully mitigated by immune reconstitution with antiretroviral therapy. This year's conference also highlighted important data on the optimal timing of antiretroviral therapy in tuberculosis coinfection, as well as the treatment and prevention of common coinfections including cryptococcal meningitis and influenza.