Active clinical trials for "HIV Infections"

Background: About 10,000 children in the United States have been living with HIV infection since birth. Little is known about the long-term effects of HIV infection and its treatment on the growth and development of these children. Because of their disease, many children with HIV face additional difficulties with their health, well-being and development, such as success in school and peer relationships. Objectives: To better understand how HIV infection and the medicines used to treat it affect the growth and development of children, adolescents and young adults who have been infected since birth or when they were very young. To develop ways to improve the quality of life for these individuals. Eligibility: -HIV-infected patients who were followed by the pediatric HIV program in NCI as of December 2004, or an HIV-infected sibling of a participant. Design: Periodic evaluation of pubertal development; bone mineralization; body composition and fat distribution; liver, kidney and heart status; and behavioral, cognitive and academic or vocational outcome of the study group. Evaluations include the following: Physical examinations, including height and weight measurements and skin-fold thickness testing to measure body fat. Review of medical records and family history. Blood and urine tests, including pregnancy test in females who can bear children. DEXA scans (X-ray test to measure bone strength and how much fat, muscle and bone is in the body). Neuropsychological testing, including evaluation of language, thinking and problem-solving abilities. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): Test using a magnetic field and radio waves to examine brain structure and function. Oral glucose tolerance test: Blood sampling before and one time after the subject drinks a sugary solution to measure the body's ability to use sugar

The purpose of this research study is to learn about levels of antiretroviral drug levels and response to HIV virus in the genital tract of women who are post-menopausal. The investigators in this study think that the levels of hormones post-menopausal HIV-infected women may have in their bodies may affect the levels of antiretroviral drug, and therefore affect how much HIV virus they have in their bodies. Since women who have already gone through menopause have different levels of hormones, such as estrogen, than women who are pre-menopausal, the investigators would like to check the levels of antiretroviral drugs in their blood, their genital secretions, and their genital tissue.

This study will evaluate whether childhood experiences are related to current sexual behavior of adult women.

The P-glycoprotein (P-gp) is a membranous transporter that modulates the intracellular concentrations of many drugs and plays thus a major role in the efficacy of the therapeutics that act within the lymphocytes, such as antiretroviral drugs. We aim at studying the evolution of this transporter's expression and activity on lymphocytes in relation with the human development from newborns to adults. We also aim at studying the influence of HIV and antiretroviral treatments on this transporter, especially anti-protease drugs, within the children population.

The purpose of this study is to observe the way two different anti-HIV treatment strategies affect nerve and brain function in adults with HIV.

The purpose of this study is to observe the effects of certain anti-HIV medications on mitochondrial activity and fat cell death. This study will enroll participants from another study, ACTG A5202, who are on treatment regimens that do not include zidovudine, stavudine, or other thymidine-containing anti-HIV medications.

Understanding whether or not viral replication occurs in the brain during chronic untreated HIV-1 infection is of undeniable importance, and has implications for treatment and research priorities. Evidence suggests that viral replication in the CNS occurs at the extremes of HIV-1 disease. Brain involvement has been reported during acute infection, and there is convincing evidence of CNS viral replication during HIV-associated dementia (HAD) and advanced AIDS. Some human and primate data suggest that viral RNA and proteins may be absent from brains of some individuals with chronic untreated HIV-1 infection despite abundant proviral DNA. However, the extent of viral replication in the brain is not known for most of the 42 million people worldwide living with untreated HIV-1 infection. Why is viral replication in the brain such a pivotal issue? Microglial cells and macrophages are primary targets for intrathecal HIV-1 replication, and this can promote neuronal injury through direct effects of gp120 and tat, and indirect induction of toxic mediators. Low-grade injury over years or decades would likely be deleterious, particularly as the population ages. Because treatment guidelines allow systemic HIV-1 replication to continue until CD4+ T cell counts decline considerably, antiretroviral therapy (ART) is not recommended for many persons living with HIV. Demonstrating replication in the brain during chronic HIV-1 infection may affect treatment strategies and encourage investigation. Identifying factors that modulate intrathecal viral replication is equally important. Anti-HIV-1 cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) partially control systemic viral replication and delay disease progression. Although available data has been provocative, the role of anti-HIV CTL in the CNS has received little attention. To fill this gap we will examine relationships between intrathecal viral replication, CTL responses, and glial activation/proliferation during HIV-1 infection. These studies will be relevant not only to AIDS but to other inflammatory diseases of the CNS as well.

ATN 062 is designed to gain scientific knowledge of microbicide-use adherence, acceptability, and attitudes among sexually active young women

This study is a cross sectional observational study to evaluate the prevalence of HLA-B*5701 in the major French ethnotypes. Any HIV-1 infected subject will be eligible for this study including antiretroviral therapy (ART) naÃ-ve and experienced subjects irrespective of abacavir use, as well as subjects previously tested for HLA-B*5701. Subjects will be approached during a standard clinic visit, and all subjects will be consented prior to any study specific procedure. Subjects will be asked to provide a tissue sample (cheek cells and blood sample) which will be used to assess HLA-B*5701 status by central and local methodologies.

This observational study is supposed to assess (under conditions of clinical practice in daily routine) whether treatment with Aptivus (tipranavir) in combination with low-dose Norvir (ritonavir) will durably suppress viral load and may achieve suppression of viral load below the limit of detection.