Core and Cohort Updates

Admin Core

After the planning and wrap-up of another successful URBAN ARCH Annual Meeting, the Admin Core has been busy supporting the cohorts as they plan analyses and manuscripts. Several of our investigators will be at RSA and CPDD this month presenting on HIV/alcohol research. Rich Saitz is participating in an HIV/alcohol symposium on Saturday, June 25^th. In addition, the team has been pulling over 500 Boston ARCH serum samples for vitamin D, analyte panel, and bone biomarker testing. Russia ARCH samples are also expected to arrive from St. Petersburg to the Boston repository this summer.

Finally, Terri O’Brien is in Mexico this summer completing her MPH practicum. Buena suerte, Terri! The team welcomed a new Research Assistant, Natalie Foster (pictured left), who is a Maternal and Child Health concentrator at the Boston University School of Public Health.

BDM Core

l-r: Debbie Cheng and Kendall Bryant at the 2016 URBAN ARCH Annual Meeting

The BDM Core is actively supporting several data analyses and manuscripts in progress across URBAN ARCH, including cross-cohort and cross-CHAART analyses. The core also continues to assist with the ARCH sample repository and many other data management activities.

Uganda Cohort

As of June 1st 2016, Uganda ARCH has concluded enrollment with a total of 447 subjects. Uganda ARCH has conducted 434 6-month assessments, 307 12-month assessments, 189 18-month assessments, 122 24-month assessments, 63 30-month assessments, and 27 36-month assessments. All participant follow-up was concluded by November 2015.

pictured left: Judy Hahn presents on Uganda ARCH at the 2016 URBAN ARCH Annual Meeting

Russia Cohort and ZINC RCT

Russia ARCH and ZINC RCT Follow-up, as of 6/1/2016

The team welcomed a summer student intern in May, Julia Purks, who was selected to receive the CFAR student internship to support her work.  She will help co-investigators develop manuscripts and presentations disseminating Russia ARCH study results and describing secondary analyses.

The team is actively pursuing data analyses, abstract submissions, and manuscript preparation.

• Accepted manuscripts:
  • Effects of heavy drinking on immunosenescent T-cell phenotypes in untreated HIV infection (So-Armah et al.) Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research
  • Sexual violence from police and HIV risks among women who inject drugs in St Petersburg, Russia (Lunze et al.) Journal of International AIDS Society
• Revise and resubmit: Alcohol use and food Insecurity among people living with HIV in Mbarara, Uganda and St. Petersburg, Russia (Patts et al.) AIDS and Behavior

The team submitted an administrative supplement in response to PA-16-066 (Research on Sex/Gender Differences) at the end of February to (1) conduct new sex/gender comparative analyses using existing Russia ARCH/ZINC data; and (2) add ~20 additional new questions to the Russia ARCH/ZINC follow-up questionnaire to assess participants’ knowledge/interest in Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV for their serodiscordant partners.

In March, study team members traveled to St. Petersburg to conduct a site visit at First St. Petersburg Pavlov State Medical University. The study team performed various quality control and study monitoring procedures. Dr. Samet also traveled to Moscow to attend the Eastern Europe and Central Asia AIDS Conference and give a presentation entitled, “Collaborative Research Addressing HIV Risk Behaviors in Russia & Improving the Cascade of HIV Care.”

Russia ARCH Study team members l-r: Elena Blokhina, Tatiana Yaroslavtseva, Jeffrey Samet, Evgeny Krupitsky, Dmitry Lioznov, Natalia Gnatienko, and Vladimir Palatkin at First St. Petersburg Pavlov State Medical University, March 30, 2016

In April, Russia ARCH and ZINC PI, Jeffrey Samet, attended the NIH-Russian Foundation for Basic Research meeting in St. Petersburg, Russia, where he gave a presentation entitled, “Comorbidities and Cascade Consequences: Alcohol, Substance Use, and HIV/AIDS in Russia” and moderated a session of presentations by Russian early career scientists. Russia ARCH/ZINC assessor, Tatiana Yaroslavtseva, also attended the meeting and her poster, “Examination of inflammatory markers in HIV-infected person with heavy alcohol consumption” won an award for best poster presentation.

Award given to Russia ARCH assessor, Tatiana Yaroslavtseva, for best poster presentation at the NIH-RFBR meeting in St. Petersburg

Boston Cohort

As of June 2016, Boston ARCH has enrolled the target number of participants into the cohort (n=250). The Boston ARCH team has completed all 6-month follow-up assessments (n=245, 99% completion rate) and all 12-month follow-up assessments (n=234, completion rate 96%). The team also completed 246 supplement assessments to assess lifetime alcohol and drug use and consequences in the cohort (98% completion rate), as well as 18-month follow-up assessments (n=203, 95% completion rate), 24-month follow-up assessments (n=133, 96% completion rate), and 30-month follow-up assessments (n=45, 90% completion rate).

clockwise: Julia Canfield, Terri O’Brien, Greg Patts, Leah Forman, Sally Bendiks, and Margo Godersky at the 2016 URBAN ARCH Annual Meeting dinner

On May 11, 2016, Dr. Theresa Kim, Boston ARCH Co-Investigator, presented her poster titled “Polypharmacy and risk of falls and fractures for patients with HIV infection and substance dependence” at the Society of General Internal Medicine 2016 Annual Meeting in Hollywood, FL. On June 16, 2016, Dr. Kim will give an oral presentation titled “Polypharmacy and non-fatal overdose in patients with HIV infection and substance dependence” at the College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD) 78^th Annual Scientific Meeting in Palm Springs, California. Dr. Angela Bazzi will present her Boston ARCH abstract “Sexual risk and substance use behaviors among partnered and non-partnered HIV-infected adults with substance dependence” in poster format at the Annual CPPD Meeting on June 14, 2016.

l-r: Natalia Gnatienko and Leah Forman at the 2016 URBAN ARCH Annual Meeting dinner

The Boston ARCH team and the BDM Core continue to work with a number of junior faculty, fellows and graduate students to support new analyses of Boston ARCH data, abstract submissions, and manuscript preparation and submissions. The team has been working with Boston ARCH Repository staff to prepare and ship final batches of stored serum for testing for 25-hydroxy-vitamin D, collagen type 1 C-terminal telopeptide (CTX-1), procollagen type 1 N-terminal propeptide (P1NP), intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH), albumin, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium.