Publications
Influence of UGT1A1 and SLC22A6 polymorphisms on the population pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of raltegravir in HIV-infected adults : a NEAT001/ANRS143 sub-study Ghent University
Using concentration-time data from the NEAT001/ARNS143 study (single sample at week 4 and 24), we determined raltegravir pharmacokinetic parameters using nonlinear mixed effects modelling (NONMEM v.7.3; 602 samples from 349 patients) and investigated the influence of demographics and SNPs (SLC22A6 and UGT1A1) on raltegravir pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics. Demographics and SNPs did not influence raltegravir pharmacokinetics and no ...
Linking inducible HIV-1 reservoir to rebound after treatment interruption Ghent University
BACKGROUND: The origin of viral rebound remains elusive as only a few links between proviral sequences and rebound plasma viruses have been described. Here we characterized the translation- and replication-competent reservoirs of three individuals under ART and compared it to rebound plasma viruses detected during analytical treatment interruption (ATI). METHODS: Peripheral blood CD4 T cells were collected from 3 ART-treated individuals right ...
The Rainbow 5-plex digital PCR assay improves quantification of the viral reservoir resulting in a better understanding of the HIV-1 proviral landscape Ghent University
BACKGROUND: The Intact Proviral DNA assay (IPDA) is considered as the gold standard to quantify the intact viral reservoir in people living with HIV-1 (PLHIV) that are treated with antiretroviral therapy (ART). By amplifying two short HIV-1 sub-genomic regions that are often deleted and/or hypermutated (psi and env), covering only 2.4% of the HIV-1 genome, this assay might overestimate the intact viral reservoir size. Therefore, we developed the ...
No significant association between 25-OH vitamin D status and SARS-VoV-2 antibody response after COVID-19 vaccination in nursing home residents and staff Ghent University
Vitamin D is an essential nutrient for various physiological functions, including immunity. While it has been suggested that higher vitamin D levels/supplementation are associated with a better immune response to COVID-19 vaccination, conflicting data exist. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the association between vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D) deficiency/supplementation, and SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses post-vaccination in nursing home ...
Sniffing out safety : canine detection and identification of SARS-CoV-2 infection from armpit sweat Ghent University
Detection dogs were trained to detect SARS-CoV-2 infection based on armpit sweat odor. Sweat samples were collected using cotton pads under the armpits of negative and positive human patients, confirmed by qPCR, for periods of 15-30 min. Multiple hospitals and organizations throughout Belgium participated in this study. The sweat samples were stored at -20 degrees C prior to being used for training purposes. Six dogs were trained under ...
Potent latency reversal by Tat RNA-containing nanoparticle enables multi-omic analysis of the HIV-1 reservoir Ghent University
The development of latency reversing agents that potently reactivate HIV without inducing global T cell activation would benefit the field of HIV reservoir research and could pave the way to a functional cure. Here, we explore the reactivation capacity of a lipid nanoparticle containing Tat mRNA (Tat-LNP) in CD4 T cells from people living with HIV undergoing antiretroviral therapy (ART). When combined with panobinostat, Tat-LNP induces latency ...
Unraveling ongoing inflammation after early ART by in-depth analysis of lymph nodes Ghent University
In-depth virological and immunological characterization of HIV-1 cure after CCR5 Delta 32/Delta 32 allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation Ghent University
Despite scientific evidence originating from two patients published to date that CCR5 Delta 32/Delta 32 hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) can cure human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), the knowledge of immunological and virological correlates of cure is limited. Here we characterize a case of long-term HIV-1 remission of a 53-year-old male who was carefully monitored for more than 9 years after allogeneic CCR5 Delta 32/Delta ...
Rethinking IL-1 antagonism in respiratory viral infections : a role for IL-1 signaling in the development of antiviral T cell immunity Ghent University Flanders Institute for Biotechnology
IL-1R integrates signals from IL-1 alpha and IL-1 beta, and it is widely expressed across tissues and immune cell types. While the expression pattern and function of IL-1R within the innate immune system is well studied, its role in adaptive immunity, particularly within the CD8 T cell compartment, remains underexplored. Here, we show that CD8 T cells dynamically upregulate IL-1R1 levels during priming by APCs, which correlates with their ...