HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis: New and Upcoming Drugs to Address the HIV Epidemic.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) provides a critical intervention toward ending the HIV epidemic and protecting people with reasons to utilize PrEP. PrEP options continue to expand as new administration modalities offer the potential to tailor PrEP use for individual success. We have provided the evidence for new and emerging antiretroviral agents for PrEP (cabotegravir, lenacapavir, dapivirine, and broadly neutralizing antibodies), divided into pharmacology, animal model, and human data, accompanied by a summary and suggested place in therapy. Cabotegravir is a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved intramuscular injection given every 2 months with a strong body of evidence demonstrating efficacy for HIV PrEP, lenacapavir administered subcutaneously every 6 months is currently under investigation for HIV PrEP, dapivirine vaginal ring is an available PrEP option for women in certain areas of Africa, and broadly neutralizing monoclonal antibodies have been challenged in demonstrating efficacy in phase 1-2 study for HIV PrEP to date. Clinical literature for individual agents is discussed with data from major studies summarized in tables. This review provides a detailed overview of recently available and premier candidate PrEP drugs.

Pushing the agenda for intravenous push administration in outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy.

Intravenous push (IVP) antimicrobial administration refers to rapid bolus infusion of medication. This drug delivery method offers improved patient convenience, superior patient and nursing satisfaction, and cost savings when used in outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy (OPAT). Antimicrobial agents must demonstrate optimal physiochemical and pharmacologic characteristics, as well as sufficient syringe stability, to be administered in this manner. Additionally, impacts on medication tolerability, patient safety, and effectiveness must be considered. This narrative review summarizes the available data and practical implications of IVP administration of antimicrobials in the OPAT setting.

Contemporary Pharmacotherapies for Nontuberculosis Mycobacterial Infections: A Narrative Review.

Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) are a group of atypical bacteria that may cause a spectrum of clinical manifestations, including pulmonary, musculoskeletal, skin and soft tissue, and cardiac infections. Antimycobacterial medication regimens for NTM infections require multiple agents with prolonged treatment courses and are often associated with poor tolerance in patients and suboptimal clinical outcomes. This review summarizes NTM pharmacotherapy, including treatment concepts, preferred medication regimens according to NTM species and site of infection, and emerging treatment methods for difficult-to-treat species.

Real-World Comparison of Bezlotoxumab to Standard of Care Therapy for Prevention of Recurrent Clostridioides difficile Infection in Patients at High Risk for Recurrence.

BACKGROUND: Bezlotoxumab (BEZ) is a monoclonal antibody used to prevent recurrent Clostridioides difficile infection (rCDI). This study investigates BEZ effectiveness in relation to rCDI and patient-specific risk factors in a real-world setting. METHODS: A matched, retrospective cohort study was conducted from 2015 to 2019 to compare BEZ to historical standard of care (SoC) therapy with vancomycin or fidaxomicin. The primary outcome was incidence of 90-day rCDI. Secondary outcomes were incidence of all-cause hospital readmission and all-cause mortality at 90 days, infusion-related reactions, and incidence of heart failure exacerbation. Baseline confounding was addressed using inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW). RESULTS: Overall, 107 participants were included (54 BEZ and 53 SoC). Mean number of prior CDI episodes was 2, median number of risk factors for rCDI was 4, and 28% of participants had severe CDI. Incidence of 90-day rCDI was 11% BEZ vs 43% SoC (P = < .001) and 90-day all-cause readmission was 40% BEZ vs 64% SoC (P = .011). In IPTW-adjusted analyses, BEZ was associated with significantly reduced odds of rCDI (odds ratio [OR], 0.14 [95% confidence interval {CI}: .05-.41]) and all-cause readmission (OR, 0.36 [95% CI: .16-.81]). No safety signals were detected with BEZ use. CONCLUSIONS: BEZ is effective for the prevention of rCDI and reduction in all-cause hospital readmission for patients at high risk for recurrence, supporting current guideline recommendations.

Effectiveness of Bezlotoxumab for Prevention of Recurrent Clostridioides difficile Infection Among Transplant Recipients.

BACKGROUND: Bezlotoxumab significantly reduces the incidence of recurrent Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI); however, limited data are available in solid organ transplant (SOT) and hematopoietic cell transplant (HCT) recipients. METHODS: We conducted a single-center retrospective analysis comparing recurrent CDI in SOT and HCT recipients receiving standard of care alone (oral vancomycin, fidaxomicin, or metronidazole) or bezlotoxumab plus standard of care. The primary outcome was 90-day incidence of recurrent CDI, and secondary outcomes included 90-day hospital readmission, mortality, and incidence of heart failure exacerbation. RESULTS: Overall, 94 patients received bezlotoxumab plus standard of care (n = 38) or standard of care alone (n = 56). The mean age was 53 years; patients had a median of 3 prior Clostridioides difficile episodes and 4 risk factors for recurrent infection. Most patients were SOT recipients (76%), with median time to index CDI occurring 2.7 years after transplantation. Ninety-day recurrent CDI occurred in 16% (6/38) in the bezlotoxumab cohort compared to 29% (16/56) in the standard of care cohort (P = .13). Multivariable regression revealed that bezlotoxumab was associated with significantly lower odds of 90-day recurrent CDI (odds ratio, 0.28 [95% confidence interval, .08-.91]). There were no differences in secondary outcomes, and no heart failure exacerbations were observed. CONCLUSIONS: In a cohort of primarily SOT recipients, bezlotoxumab was well tolerated and associated with lower odds of recurrent CDI at 90 days. Larger, prospective trials are needed to confirm these findings among SOT and HCT populations.

Combination ceftaroline and daptomycin salvage therapy for complicated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia compared with standard of care.

Complicated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections (MRSA-BSIs), particularly those with delayed culture clearance, are associated with high mortality. Combination therapy with daptomycin and ceftaroline (DAP+CPT) represents a novel therapeutic approach to MRSA-BSI owing to synergistic bactericidal activity. This study aimed to compare DAP+CPT with historical standard of care (SoC) for treatment of complicated MRSA-BSI. This single-centre retrospective cohort study included patients with complicated MRSA-BSI at University of Colorado Hospital. Patients receiving DAP+CPT for ≥48 h between November 2013 and March 2020 or SoC with vancomycin or DAP ± gentamicin and/or rifampicin from November 2011 to December 2013 were compared. The primary outcome was clinical failure defined as a composite of MRSA-related mortality and recurrent infection at 60 days. A total of 60 patients received DAP+CPT (n = 30) or SoC (n = 30). Median age was 56 years and median Pitt bacteremia score was 3. Common infectious sites were endovascular (63%) and musculoskeletal (40%). DAP+CPT was associated with a numerically lower incidence of clinical failure compared with SoC (20% vs. 43%; P = 0.052). Multivariable analysis controlling for immunocompromised status (OR, 6.90, 95% CI 1.08-44.15), Charlson comorbidity index (OR, 1.12, 95% CI 0.90-1.39) and source control (OR, 0.35, 95% CI 0.08-1.46) associated DAP+CPT with 77% lower odds of clinical failure (OR, 0.23, 95% CI 0.06-0.89). In patients with complicated MRSA-BSI with delayed clearance, DAP+CPT trended towards lower rates of clinical failure than SoC and was significantly associated with decreased clinical failure after adjustment for baseline differences.

Predictors of vaccination rates in people living with HIV followed at a specialty care clinic.

People Living with HIV (PLWH) remain disproportionately susceptible to vaccine-preventable illnesses due to increased morbidity and mortality from common pathogens, increased transmission related to epidemiologic factors, and decreased vaccination rates. We aimed to describe patient-specific predictive factors that may impact adherence to the CDC's recommended vaccination schedules in PLWH. We retrospectively evaluated adult PLWH in care at the University of Nebraska Medical Center's HIV clinic and collected information related to demographics, clinic visits, vaccination status, and measures of HIV disease control. Patients were categorized as "Adherent" if they had received all vaccinations for which they were eligible and were categorized as "Non-Adherent" if they were deficient or delayed in receiving one or more vaccinations. Participant characteristics were compared between groups by multivariable logistic regression to identify predictors associated with vaccine schedule non-adherence. We evaluated 502 PLWH who met our inclusion criteria; 206 of these (41%) had received all eligible vaccinations, while 296 (59%) were missing one or more vaccinations. The mean age of participants was 48 years old, 76% were male, and 53% were white. Our participants had a median of 2.83 clinic visits per year and missed 8.3% of scheduled clinic visits. Factors associated with non-adherence to vaccination schedules included a high frequency of missed clinic appointments (>10%), men who have sex with men, and a CD4 count <200 cells/mm3. Knowledge of variables associated with vaccination rates may be beneficial in identifying patients at-risk for under-vaccination and designing targeted education programs for providers and patients.

Plasma and intracellular pharmacokinetics of tenofovir disoproxil fumarate and emtricitabine in transgender women receiving feminizing hormone therapy.

BACKGROUND: Transwomen have an increased risk of HIV acquisition compared with other adults. Drug-drug interactions between pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and gender-affirming therapy are cited as a reason for poor PrEP uptake among transwomen. We evaluated plasma tenofovir and emtricitabine pharmacokinetics and their active intracellular anabolites, tenofovir-diphosphate and emtricitabine-triphosphate, in transwomen receiving feminizing hormones. METHODS: We enrolled HIV-negative transwomen (≥19 years) not receiving PrEP. Participants took oral tenofovir disoproxil fumarate/emtricitabine 300/200 mg daily for 14 days. Plasma was collected at 0 h (pre-dose), 0.5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8 and 12 h on day 14 post-tenofovir disoproxil fumarate/emtricitabine dose. The plasma AUC0-24 was calculated using the trapezoidal rule and compared with historical HIV-negative cisgender adults as geometric mean ratios (GMRs, 90% CI). Secondarily, tenofovir-diphosphate and emtricitabine-triphosphate from PBMCs collected at 0 h and 12 h were reported descriptively as geometric means (90% CI). Clinical trials registration: NCT03270969. RESULTS: Among 15 transwomen (mean age 32 years), geometric mean tenofovir and emtricitabine plasma AUC0-24 were lower compared with controls: tenofovir, 2.10 versus 2.76 mg·h/L, GMR 0.76 (0.65-0.90), P = 0.01; emtricitabine, 9.15 versus 10.64 mg·h/L, GMR 0.86 (0.75-0.98), P = 0.07. Tenofovir-diphosphate and emtricitabine-triphosphate concentrations were higher than previously reported in the literature: 167.1 (146.6-190.5) fmol/106 cells and 15.4 (13.8-17.3) pmol/106 cells, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: We observed lower plasma tenofovir and emtricitabine concentrations in transwomen compared with historical cisgender adults, yet intracellular tenofovir-diphosphate and emtricitabine-triphosphate concentrations were higher than previously reported in PBMCs. Understanding the differences of PrEP pharmacokinetics in plasma and tissue compartments and the resultant impact on efficacy remains important for transwomen.

Mutational analysis of essential septins reveals a role for septin-mediated signaling in filamentation.

Septin proteins are conserved structural proteins that often demarcate regions of cell division. The essential nature of the septin ring, composed of several septin proteins, complicates investigation of the functions of the ring, although careful analysis in the model yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has elucidated the role that septins play in the cell cycle. Mutation analysis of nonessential septins in the pathogenic fungus Candida albicans has shown that septins also have vital roles in cell wall regulation (CWR), hyphal formation, and pathogenesis. While mutations in nonessential septins have been useful in establishing phenotypes, the septin defect is so slight that identifying causative associations between septins and downstream effectors has been difficult. In this work, we describe decreased abundance by mRNA perturbation (DAmP) alleles of essential septins, which display a septin defect more severe than the defect observed in deletions of nonessential septins. The septin DAmP alleles have allowed us to genetically separate the roles of septins in hyphal growth and CWR and to identify the cyclic AMP pathway as a pathway that likely acts in a parallel manner with septins in hyphal morphogenesis.