News

15

Nov, 2021

VERDI project launches

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Today we launch VERDI, a project that prioritizes women and children in the research on new coronavirus variants The University of Padua and Penta Foundation are leaders of VERDI, a new European research consortium on coronavirus in children and pregnant women. Carlo Giaquinto, Professor at University of Padova and President of Penta, together with Professor Ali Judd at University College London, will be the scientific coordinators of VERDI.   Padova, Italy – 15 November 2021 Children and pregnant women have taken a back seat during the COVID-19 pandemic. With children most likely to be the last to be […]

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12

Nov, 2021

World Pneumonia Day 2021: Every breath counts

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It’s impossible to ignore the Covid-19 pandemic and how it has gripped the lives of everyone around the world, but it is equally impossible to ignore the thousands of lives that are lost daily to chest infections (pneumonia). According to UNICEF, pneumonia is the single largest cause of death in children under five and the majority of these deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. Pneumonia needn’t be the deadly infectious disease that it is today. Through immunization, nutritional interventions, and controlling environmental risk factors the burden of child pneumonia can be […]

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29

Oct, 2021

ODYSSEY trial wins 2021 Hector Award

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It was announced at the 8th European AIDS Conference that Angela Colbers and David Burger received the Hector Research Award in HIV 2021 in clinical and/or epidemiological science on behalf of the ODYSSEY trial team! The winning paper Simplified dolutegravir dosing for children with HIV weighting 20kg or more pharmacokinetic and safety substudies of the multicentre randomised ODYSSEY trial, can be found here. Congratulations to the entire study team and thank you to all the families and children who participated in the ODYSSEY trial. Sponsored by Penta and funded by […]

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23

Jul, 2021

CARMA study publishes article in Journal of International AIDS Society

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The CARMA team in the EPIICAL consortium have just published the article Early ART initiation during infancy preserves natural killer cells in young European adolescents living with HIV (CARMA cohort) in the Journal of International AIDS Society. HIV infection causes pathological changes in the natural killer cell compartment, a type of white blood cell with enzymes that kill cells infected with a virus. Through antiretroviral therapy (ART), this compartment can be partially restored. The CARMA team looked into the characteristics and function of natural killer cells in children born with HIV and […]

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24

Mar, 2021

SARS-CoV-2 infection and transmission in primary schools in England in June–December, 2020 (sKIDs): an active, prospective surveillance study

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Authors: Shamez N Ladhani, Frances Baawuah, Joanne Beckmann, Ifeanichukwu O Okike, Shazaad Ahmad, Joanna Garstang, Andrew J Brent, Bernadette Brent, Jemma Walker, Nick Andrews, Georgina Ireland, Felicity Aiano, Zahin Amin-Chowdhury, Louise Letley, Jessica Flood, Samuel E I Jones, Ray Borrow, Ezra Linley, Maria Zambon, John Poh, Vanessa Saliba, Gayatri Amirthalingam, Jamie Lopez Bernal, Kevin E Brown, Mary E Ramsay Published in: The Lancet   Summary Background: Little is known about the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and transmission in educational settings. Public Health England initiated a study, COVID-19 Surveillance in School […]

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19

Mar, 2021

Vaccinating Children against Covid-19 — The Lessons of Measles

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Authors: Perri Klass, M.D. and Adam J. Ratner, M.D., M.P.H. Published in: The New England Journal of Medicine   Introduction: Imagine a highly contagious virus circulating in the community. Many infected children have fever and some general misery but recover without incident. Rarely, devastating complications occur, leading to hospitalization, severe illness, and occasional deaths. Susceptible adults fare worse, with higher rates of poor outcomes. Would you want your child vaccinated against this disease? You guessed we were talking about measles, right? As the first SARS-CoV-2 vaccines are rolled out to […]

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19

Mar, 2021

Virological and immunological features of SARS COV 2 infected children who who developed neutralizing antibodies

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Authors: Nicola Cotugno, Alessandra Ruggiero, Francesco Bonfante, Paolo Rossi, Anita De Rossi, Paolo Palma et al. Published in: Cell Reports   Summary: As the global COVID-19 pandemic progresses, it is paramount to gain knowledge on adaptive immunity to SARS-CoV-2 in children to define immune correlates of protection upon immunization or infection. We analyzed anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and their neutralizing activity (PRNT) in 66 COVID-19-infected children at 7 (±2) days after symptom onset. Individuals with specific humoral responses presented faster virus clearance and lower viral load associated with a reduced in vitro infectivity. […]

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12

Mar, 2021

Sharing our understanding of the immune response of children living with HIV

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EPIICAL is proud to have presented four abstracts at the CROI conference this year, sharing updated information on viral decay and the immune response of children living with HIV who begin treatment early in life.   EFFECT OF HIV ON IMMUNE ACTIVATION AND EXHAUSTION IN CD4 AND CD8 T CELLS IN INFANTS Stefano Rinaldi, Vinh B. Dinh, Suresh Pallikkuth, Lesley D. Armas, Nadia Sitoe, Rajendra Pahwa, Nicola Cotugno, Paula Vaz, Paolo Palma, MariaGrazia Lain, Savita G. Pahwa DYNAMICS OF INTACT PROVIRAL SEQUENCES IN EARLY TREATED HIV-1 CLADE C–INFECTED INFANTS Catherine […]

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11

Mar, 2021

ODYSSEY trial finds new drug is better for treating children living with HIV

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The anti-HIV drug Dolutegravir improves outcomes for children with HIV infection when given in a 3-drug combination. These results come from the ODYSSEY trial which was presented yesterday at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. Dolutegravir has a number of potential advantages, including: Few drug-to-drug interactions, making it easier to use when treating people who need treatment for other conditions such as tuberculosis High potency at a low milligram dose, meaning tablets can be small High genetic barrier to resistance Low cost Trials of dolutegravir in combination treatments in […]

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