HIV Gateway: expanding access to Caribbean HIV research via a website

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Evidence-based HIV programming and policy in the Caribbean is hampered by limited access to existing research and other information about HIV in the region. A website was developed to facilitate such access. DESIGN AND METHODS: The HIV Gateway is a repository of publications and reports on HIV in the Caribbean searchable via a public website (www.hivgateway.com). Eligibility criteria were developed and used for searches to identify content on databases such as PubMed and Scopus. HIV researchers were approached to recommend and submit items, including unpublished research. Infographic tools were developed. RESULTS: By November 2014, the HIV Gateway contained over 5,500 journal publications, reports, conference abstracts, posters and slide presentations on HIV in the Caribbean, including over 250 documents not previously published or available online. All references include abstracts and web addresses (URLs) or PDFs providing access to original publications. Infographic tools enable users to analyse content by keyword, author and country. CONCLUSION: HIV Gateway provides opportunities for researchers and practitioners to build evidence-based approaches and to collaborate based on knowledge of who is working on issues and topics. Since it is publicly accessible, it facilitates the informed involvement of Caribbean people, including vulnerable populations, in the HIV response. Healthcare professionals can contribute articles or reports to continually expand and update the database and make this the website of choice for anyone wanting to find out about HIV in the Caribbean.

Molecular analysis of HIV-1 infection in Barbados

OBJECTIVE: To determine the sub-type(s) of HIV-1 in patients with advanced disease in Barbados. DESIGN AND METHODS: A molecular analysis was performed in sequences obtained from 38 HIV-1 infected persons. A 375 base pair fragment was amplified from the V3 loop of the env region of the HIV genome, using a nested RT-PCR method. The resulting fragment was sequenced directly and alignment was performed using the BLAST (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool) search. RESULTS: Of 38 patients with advanced HIV-1 infection, all were found to be infected with HIV-1 subtype B, which closely relates to a similar subtype found in North America and Europe. This is the first time that HIV subtypes have been described from Barbadian patients with advanced HIV disease. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings support the hypothesis that HIV infection in Barbados was derived initially from North America and Europe, where type B HIV infection is most common. Moreover, these findings indicate that vaccines suitable for use in North America will probably be effective in our population.(Au)