Although the rate of new HIV infections has been declining, AIDS continues to be one of the leading causes of death worldwide. The lack of an effective HIV vaccine makes it necessary to develop alternative strategies, such as the development of topical microbicides, to prevent transmission. Antimicrobial peptides represent promising microbicide candidates. Previously, we succeeded in enhancing the anti-HIV activities of several peptides that form helical structures based on the bioinformatic results learned from the antimicrobial peptide database. This study showed that Lys-to-Arg alterations also improved the HIV inhibitory activity of thanatin which is known to form a β-hairpin structure. Using a previously reported de novo designed HIV inhibitory peptide GLR-19 as the starting template, loop structures of varying sizes were generated by restraining a disulfide bond at different positions. The thanatin-mimicking constructs are referred to as GLRC peptides since they are composed of only four amino acid residues G, L, R, and C. While GLRC-2, the peptide with a medium-sized loop structure, was most potent against HIV-1 and HSV-2, GLRC-3, with the small loop structure, was most potent against Escherichia coli K12. Thus, the efficacy of the GLRC peptides is microbe dependent. Further terminal sequence truncation of GLRC-2 reduced antimicrobial activity against both viruses and bacteria. It appears that the high antiviral potency of GLRC-2 is related to high hydrophobicity, although a wide-range correlation is lacking. In addition, GLRC-2, which is more active against viruses, is also more resistant to the action of chymotrypsin. Therefore, GLRC-2, a novel peptide that acquired not only higher stability but also higher anti-HIV activity than the GLR-19 template, serves as the starting point for additional rounds of peptide engineering.

Violence against women is present in every country and it cut across boundaries of culture, class, education, income, ethnicity and age. Research has shown that there are links between HIV and AIDS, gender inequity and gender based violence that prevents women from influencing the circumstances of sex, resulting in unsafe sex practice and contracting of sexually transmitted infections including HIV and AIDS. The overall objective of the study was to increase understanding of Intimate Partner Violence experiences of sexual assault, its risk factor on the transmission of HIV infection among women admitted in Trauma Unit A of a particular hospital in the Vhembe District. This raises the questions “What is the women’s experience of sexual assault? Is sexual assault a risk factor to the transmission of HIV infection among women?” The research design was qualitative, exploratory descriptive and contextual in nature. In this study the target population consisted of all women who made use of a trauma unit A ata particular hospital in the LimpopoProvince. Six participants were selected by means of purposive sampling. In-depth individual interviews were conducted, using a voice recorder. The principles outlined by Lincoln and Guba were followed to ensure the trustworthiness of the study. Data analysis was guided by Tesch’s principles of qualitative data analysis. The findings of the study reflected that women experienced Intimate Partner Violence sexual assault in their lives and that sexual assault is a risk factor to the transmission of HIV infection among women. The study therefore, suggests a need for screening and prevention programmes that aims to reduce Intimate Partner Violence and HIV infection.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and current stimulant abuse have both been shown to damage basal ganglia and hippocampus. While the effects of current stimulant abuse on neurological functioning is welldocumented, whether residual damage can be detected in patients with a distant history of past stimulant abuse/ dependence remains to be understood. Given that past stimulant abuse is common among HIV-infected individuals; this is a question of considerable clinical significance. The present study employed Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) and structural MRI to examine brain integrity (as measured by FA and MD) and volume in the basal ganglia (BG) and hippocampus among older HIV-infected adults with histories of stimulant abuse. Lower fractional anisotropy and greater diffusivity (representative of microstructural breakdown) in basal ganglia and hippocampal structures were documented among former stimulant abusers compared to stimulant-naïve individuals. Length of abstinence was also associated with BG integrity, such that those with shorter abstinence periods demonstrated greater MD of the BG. Our findings suggest that past stimulant abuse is associated with neurological dysfunction, though this improves with increasing abstinence.