Impact of Protein Supplementation and Care and Support on Body Composition and CD4 Count Among HIV-Infected Women Living in Rural India: Results from a Randomized Pilot Clinical Trial

Body composition in HIV-infected individuals is subject to many influences. We conducted a pilot six-month randomized trial of 68 WLA (women living with AIDS) from rural India. High protein intervention combined with education and supportive care delivered by HIV-trained village women (Asha [Activated Social Health Activist] Life [AL]) was compared to standard protein with usual care delivered by village community assistants (Usual Care [UC]). Measurements included CD4 counts, ART adherence, socio-demographics, disease characteristics (questionnaires); and anthropometry (bioimpedance analyzer). Repeated measures analysis of variance modeled associations. AL significantly gained in BMI, muscle mass, fat mass, ART adherence, and CD4 counts compared to UC, with higher weight and muscle mass gains among ART adherent (≥ 66%) participants who had healthier immunity (CD4 ≥ 450). BMI of WLA improved through high protein supplementation combined with education and supportive care. Future research is needed to determine which intervention aspect was most responsible

International progress in cancer gene therapy

We overview the current status and most recent developments in the field of cancer gene therapy from an international viewpoint. We have largely based our review on presentations from the eigth annual meeting of the International Society for Cell and Gene Therapy of Cancer held in Mumbai, India (www.iscgt.com and www.iscgtindia.com). This has afforded us with the opportunity to describe the most recently published and unpublished data in the field of cancer gene therapy, gaining an insight into the priorities in this field today. In doing so, we hope to have provided a state of the art review of cancer gene therapy, with the help of some of the best-known researchers in the field. In addition, due to the location of the meeting, we had a unique opportunity to listen to some of the seminal cancer gene therapy work being performed in India at this tim