Prizes and awards recipients announced

21 July 2019 (Mexico City, Mexico) – The International AIDS Society (IAS) announced recipients of prizes and awards at the 10th IAS Conference on HIV Science (IAS 2019) today. These recognize innovation in HIV research, leadership in protecting human rights and the most promising work by an emerging generation of early-career scientists.

The honourees will take the stage in Mexico City this week in recognition of their contributions to the field.

“We are witnessing an exciting moment in science with incremental breakthroughs each day that take us closer to eliminating HIV,” IAS 2019 International Scientific Chair and IAS President Anton Pozniak said. “These awards provide the opportunity to recognize the tireless contributions of established researchers and to welcome the next generation into the fold.”

The following recipients of prizes and awards at IAS 2019 were announced.

Research awards

Lange/van Tongeren Prizes (IAS-ANRS) for Young Investigators
The US$2,000 Lange/van Tongeren Prizes for Young Investigators, named in memory of Joep Lange and Jacqueline van Tongeren, are jointly funded by the IAS and the Agence Nationale de Recherche sur le sida et les hépatites virales (ANRS). The prizes support young researchers who demonstrate innovation, originality, rationale and quality in the field of HIV research. One prize is awarded to the top-scoring abstracts in each of the conference tracks. The Lange/van Tongeren Prizes for Young Investigators at IAS 2019 are awarded to:

Track A: Basic science
• Stéphane Isnard (Canada), “Relevance of Reg3 and I-FABP on microbial translocation, inflammation and reservoir size in people living with HIV”
Track B: Clinical science
• Faith Moyo (South Africa), “Characterizing viral load burden among HIV-infected women at time of delivery: Findings from four tertiary obstetric units in Gauteng, South Africa”
Track C: Prevention science
• Matthew A. Spinelli (United States), “Homelessness at diagnosis is the strongest predictor of death among persons with HIV in a population-based study of a U.S. city”
Track D: Implementation science
• Carrie Lyons (United States), “Utilizing individual level data to characterize the relationship between HIV infection and the legal context of sex work across 10 countries in sub Saharan Africa”
Presented by François Dabis, Director, ANRS, France, and Anton Pozniak, IAS 2019 International Scientific Chair and IAS President, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Trust, United Kingdom.

IAS/Abivax Research-for-Cure Academy Fellowship Prize
The IAS Research-for-Cure Academy provides training on state-of-the-art HIV cure research to talented early- to mid-career investigators and clinical scientists working in resource-constrained settings. This US$2,000 annual prize is presented to a member of the academy class whose work shows particular promise. The second annual Research-for-Cure Academy Fellowship Prize is awarded to:
• Natalia Laufer (Argentina), for her active engagement and valuable input to the collaborative research projects at the Research-for-Cure Academy. Natalia works as a as a physician, basic/clinical researcher, teacher and as a member of a community outreach programme. Find out more.
Presented by Sharon Lewin, The Doherty Institute, The University of Melbourne, Australia, and Ian McGowan, Orion Biotechnology, Spain.

IAS TB/HIV Research Prizes
The five US$2,000 IAS TB/HIV Research Prizes are awarded by the IAS HIV Co-Infections and Co-Morbidities initiative. The prizes incentivize the investigation of pertinent research questions that affect TB/HIV co-infection and operational effectiveness of implementing core TB/HIV collaborative services, including TB/HIV service integration research. The prizes are presented to the five top-scoring abstracts in any of these areas. The IAS TB/HIV Research Prizes at IAS 2019 are awarded to:
• Nathalie De Castro (France), “Virologic efficacy of raltegravir vs. efavirenz-based antiretroviral treatment in HIV1-infected adults with tuberculosis: W48 results of the ANRS 12300 Reflate TB2 trial”
• Justin Jones (United States), “Community-based case finding for tuberculosis & HIV integrated with non-communicable diseases in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa”
• Leila Chaisson (United States), “CD4 count-based guidelines for tuberculin skin testing and tuberculosis preventive therapy in people living with HIV”
• Jennifer Zelnick (United States), “Severe adherence challenges in the treatment of multi- and extensively drug resistant tuberculosis and HIV: Electronic dose monitoring and mixed methods to identify and characterize high-risk subpopulations”
• Anna Maria Mandalakas (United States), “ART initiation within 8 weeks of TB treatment leads to superior TB outcomes in ART-naïve children and adolescents living with HIV: Results from six high TB/HIV burden countries”
Presented by Juan Mosqueda, Universidad de Guanajuato, Mexico, and Cristina Mussini, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy.

IAS Injecting Drug Use Research Prizes
The five inaugural US$2,000 IAS Injecting Drug Use Research Prizes are awarded by the IAS HIV Co-Infections and Co-Morbidities initiative. The prizes incentivize researchers to address important questions around the management of HCV infection and/or HIV/HCV co-infection in people who inject drugs, in particular through interdisciplinary research on drug dependence, harm reduction and/or drug policy. The IAS Injecting Drug Use Research Prizes at IAS 2019 are awarded to:
• Pieter Baker (United States), “Policing as a structural determinant of HIV risk among people who inject drugs: A systematic literature review”
• Maria Luisa Mittal (Mexico), “Gender differences in syringe-related policing behaviors and attitudes following a police education program in Tijuana, Mexico: A longitudinal mixed methods analysis”
• Olga Denisiuk (Ukraine), “Community initiated treatment for HIV-positive people who inject drugs in Ukraine”
• Sun Tun (Myanmar), “Heroin use and sexual risk behaviours among HIV/HCV co-infected methadone patients in Myanmar”
• Elia Mmbaga (Tanzania), “HCV, HIV/HCV co-infection among people injecting drugs in Tanzania: A hidden epidemic”
Presented by Rayner Kay Jin Tan, National University of Singapore, Singapore, and Olga Varetska, Alliance for Public Health, Ukraine.

Dominique Dormont Award
The US$5,000 IAS and ANRS Dominique Dormont award is funded by the Dominique Dormont Association to support young researchers working on chronic conditions, with a particular focus on the interface between HIV and other chronic diseases. The prize highlights researchers who demonstrate originality, rationale, quality and a multidisciplinary and integrative approach in the field of HIV and AIDS research. The IAS-ANRS Dominique Prize at IAS 2019 is awarded to:
• Stéphane Isnard (Canada), “Relevance of Reg3 and I-FABP on microbial translocation, inflammation and reservoir size in people living with HIV”
Presented by Michaela Muller-Trutwin, Institut Pasteur, France.

IAS CIPHER Research Grants
CIPHER is the IAS Collaborative Initiative for Paediatric HIV Education and Research. The CIPHER Grants provide a unique opportunity for early-stage investigators to address targeted research gaps in paediatric and adolescent HIV in resource-limited settings that support evidence-informed policy. The grants are for up to US$150,000 each for up to two years, and 80% of grants awarded go to applicants from low- and middle-income countries. The grants are made possible through support from CIPHER founding sponsor ViiV Healthcare and Janssen. The 2019 CIPHER Research Grants are presented to:
• Ceri Evans (Zimbabwe), whose project will evaluate the impact of improved water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) on cytomegalovirus co-infection in HIV-affected mothers and children in rural Zimbabwe
• Tongdiyen Jasper (Nigeria), who will investigate the impact of structured caregiver peer support (CaPS) on ART adherence and viral suppression among children living with HIV in Nigeria in a randomized controlled trial
• Sarah Skeen (South Africa), for the Khwezi Lokusa (Early Morning Star) Project, which will look at integrating an evidence-based intervention component to promote HIV testing of young children into community-based parenting programmes

In addition, one young researcher was selected to receive a CIPHER Fellowship contributing to strengthened HIV clinical research capacity in countries with high HIV burden.
• Janan Dietrich (South Africa), who will investigate factors associated with viral suppression among adolescent girls and young women living with HIV and participating in the HERStory Study in six South African districts
Presented by Anton Pozniak, IAS 2019 International Scientific Chair and IAS President, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Trust, United Kingdom.

IAS/MSD Prize for Operational and Implementation Research in Differentiated Service Delivery
The IAS and Merck Sharpe & Dohme (MSD) award a co-partnered prize for the top-scoring abstracts in operational and implementation research in differentiated service delivery. The prize recognizes outstanding research that addresses key knowledge gaps and links new evidence to strategic programme priorities in differentiated service delivery. The prize (US$10,000 per recipient), funded by MSD, is awarded to the four highest-scoring abstracts:.
• Jennifer Zech (United States), “Optimizing treatment models for people living with HIV in urban Zimbabwe: Findings from a mixed methods study”
• Vivian Chitiyo (Zimbabwe), “Differentiated antiretroviral therapy delivery: A review of implementation progress and challenges in Zimbabwe”
• Didier Kamerhe (Democratic Republic of the Congo), “Improved HIV treatment retention among patients enrolled in a differentiated care model at Kenya General Reference Hospital in Haut Katanga province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo”
• Bruce Agins (United States), “Improving rapid ART initiation in Blantyre, Malawi, through implementation of a quality improvement collaborative”

Presented by Linda-Gail Bekker, IAS Past-President, Desmond Tutu HIV Centre, University of Cape Town, South Africa.

“The IAS and its partners congratulate this diverse pool of researchers,” Anton Pozniak said. “Their innovation and dedication to science is both the backbone and future success of the HIV response.”

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