Last week, the 2024 meeting of the International AIDS Society (IAS) was wrapping up as the 2024 Olympic Games were about to begin. That timing was probably what prompted the use of multiple sports analogies at Thursday’s plenary session on HIV prevention strategies. Given the decades-long attempts at developing an HIV vaccine, Peter Piot, past IAS president and director emeritus and professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said in his introduction: “This is clearly a marathon. But marathons also finish.”

Researchers from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention detailed the discovery of novel aromatic heterocycle substituted aminamidine derivatives (AADs) for the treatment of Necator americanus infection (hookworms).

Half of the individuals with genital herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection experience several recurrence episodes per year, especially if the causative agent is HSV type 2 (HSV-2). Standard-of-care viral DNA polymerase inhibitors are not fully effective in preventing recurrences and managing symptoms.

Integrase strand transfer inhibitors (INSTI) under a once-daily oral schedule are the standard-of-care treatment for HIV. Longer-acting oral and injectable formulations to facilitate adherence to treatment regimens are needed.

Researchers from CONICET and affiliated organizations presented the discovery of novel llama-derived single-chain antibody fragments (VHHs) specific for type A influenza virus.

The 2024 meeting of the International AIDS Society (IAS), which is being held in Munich this week, began with the announcement of another curative bone marrow transplant. The new case brings the total number of patients cured of HIV via a bone marrow transplant up to 7 since “Berlin patient” Timothy Ray Brown became the first such person in 2007.

Muscle fatigue associated with brain inflammation could be prevented by modulating certain cytokines. Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) have studied inflammation in the CNS in infection models of Escherichia coli, SARS-CoV-2 and amyloid-β toxicity, unveiling its impact on motor function, the role of IL-6 in this process and how to mitigate it in chronic disease.

Zika virus (ZIKV), Dengue virus (DENV) and yellow fever virus (YFV) are closely related mosquito-borne flaviviruses for which effective treatment or prophylactic options are still scarce.

Previous preclinical studies of the prodrug of cidofovir, NPP-669, have shown its oral bioavailability, excellent metabolic and pharmacokinetic parameters, as well as its broad-range activity against dsDNA viruses in vitro.