The SIALON Project: Report on HIV Prevalence and Risk Behaviour Among MSM in Six European Cities

Data from 23 European countries show that the annual number of HIV diagnoses in men who have sex with men (MSM) increased by 86% between 2000 and 2006. This paper reports the main preliminary results of a bio-behavioural survey in MSM with a specific focus on HIV prevalence and use of United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) indicators in six cities in Southern and Eastern Europe. Time-location sampling (TLS) was used. A total number of 2,356 questionnaires and 2,241 oral fluid samples were collected (invalid samples 4.1%). The data show different socio-demographic patterns across countries regarding age, level of education, living conditions, living area and self-identity. Southern European cities had the highest percentage of people who had tested for HIV and collected the result. More than 50% of respondents in the sample from Barcelona reported having used a condom last time they had anal sex (57.2%), whilst in all other cities this proportion was below 50%. The cities with the highest HIV prevalence in MSM were Barcelona (17.0%) and Verona (11.8%) whilst lower percentages were reported in Bratislava (6.1%), Bucharest (4.6%), Ljubljana (5.1%) and Prague (2.6%). The low prevalence in Eastern European cities is encouraging. However, with the level of high-risk sexual behaviour documented and the lower frequency of HIV test seeking behaviour, there is a clear risk of an increase in HIV transmission

EMIS-2017. Rapporto per l'Italia

EMIS-2017. Indagine su salute, comportamenti a rischio e bisogni di prevenzione tra le persone gay, bisessuali, ed altri MSM. Rapporto per l'Itali

Antiretroviral therapy and reasons for not taking it among men having sex with men (MSM)--results from the European MSM Internet Survey (EMIS).

BACKGROUND: The preventive effects of antiretroviral treatment (ART) on onward transmission of HIV are a major reason for broadening eligibility for ART. In the WHO European Region, surveillance reveals substantial differences in access to ART across regions and sub-populations. We analysed self-reported data on ART and reasons for not taking ART from EMIS, a large Pan-European Internet survey among men-who-have-sex-with-men (MSM). METHODS: Respondents from 38 European countries reported their last HIV test result and, if diagnosed with HIV, their treatment status, and reasons for not taking or having stopped ART from a 7 item multiple choice list and/ or answered an open-ended question to give other reasons. Responses were classified as fear of consequences, perceived lack of need, and ART inaccessibility based on factor analysis. Associations between not taking ART because of fear of consequences, and demographic, behavioural and contextual indicators were identified in a multivariable regression model. RESULTS: 13,353 (7.7%) of 174,209 respondents had been diagnosed with HIV. Among them 3,391 (25.4%) had never received ART, and 278 (2.1%) had stopped taking ART. Perceived lack of need was by far the most common reason for not taking or stopping ART (mentioned by 3259 (88.8%) respondents), followed by fear of consequences (428 (11.7%)), and ART inaccessibility (86 (2.3%)). For all reasons, an East-West gradient could be seen, with larger proportions of men living in Central and Eastern Europe reporting reasons other than medical advice for not taking ART. A minority of men were reluctant to start ART independent of medical advice and this was associated with experiences of discrimination in health care systems. CONCLUSIONS: ART is widely available for MSM diagnosed with HIV across Europe. Not being on treatment is predominantly due to treatment not being recommended by their physician and/or not perceived to be needed by the respondent

Generation and characterization of a transgenic mouse carrying a functional human β-globin gene with the IVSI-6 thalassemia mutation

Mouse models that carry mutations causing thalassemia represent a suitable tool to test in vivo new mutation-specific therapeutic approaches. Transgenic mice carrying the -globin IVSI-6 mutation (the most frequent in Middle-Eastern regions and recurrent in Italy and Greece) are, at present, not available. We report the production and characterization of a transgenic mouse line (TG- -IVSI-6) carrying the IVSI-6 thalassemia point mutation within the human -globin gene. In the TG--IVSI-6 mouse (a) the transgenic integration region is located in mouse chromosome 7; (b) the expression of the transgene is tissue specific; (c) as expected, normally spliced human -globin mRNA is produced, giving rise to -globin production and formation of a humanmouse tetrameric chimeric hemoglobin mu-globin2/ hu-globin2 and, more importantly, (d) the aberrant -globin-IVSI-6 RNAs are present in blood cells. The TG--IVSI-6 mouse reproduces the molecular features of IVSI-6 -thalassemia and might be used as an in vivo model to characterize the effects of antisense oligodeoxynucleotides targeting the cryptic sites responsible for the generation of aberrantly spliced -globin RNA sequences, caused by the IVSI-6 mutation. These experiments are expected to be crucial for the development of a personalized therapy for -thalassemi

Socio-demographic factors predicting HIV test seeking behaviour among MSM in 6 EU cities

HIV testing is generally accepted as being the lynchpin of a prevention strategy to tackle the HIV epidemic among MSM. However, few studies have analysed in detail the factors that influence HIV test seeking behaviour