The analysis of HIV incidence between 2007 and 2011 showed that WB-infected persons (1.72 cases per 100 person-years/PJ) had more than twice the risk of becoming infected with HIV compared to WB-negative persons (0.69 per 100 PJ). In contrast, the HIV incidence examined in the period 2011-2019 in people who had been cured of WB (0.73 cases per 100 PJ) differed only insignificantly and not statistically significantly from people who had never been infected with WB (0.68 cases per 100 PJ).
In the group of subjects who were cured of W. bancrofti, a comparison of the two study periods showed a reduction in HIV incidence of around 60 percent, which was also statistically significant after adjustment for age and gender (measured odds ratio: 0.41, p=0.012). In the comparison group of people who were not infected with W. bancrofti in either of the two periods, however, there was no change in HIV incidence.
DZIF researcher Prof. Dr. med. Inge Kroidl from the Tropical Institute of the LMU Klinikum concludes: "This confirms the earlier hypothesis that it is indeed the worm W. bancrofti that has an influence on the level of HIV incidence and that combating W. bancrofti can help to reduce the rate of new HIV infections."
"Helminth infections have been shown to increase the risk of HIV infection. We are continuing to investigate which immunological processes could explain this increased susceptibility to HIV transmission by W. bancrofti," says Prof. Michael Hoelscher, MD, Director of the Munich Tropical Institute.
Dr. Mkunde Chachage of NIMR-MMRC emphasizes: "This groundbreaking research demonstrates the importance of engaging communities to identify additional interventions in our regional HIV control strategies and underscores their critical role in shaping effective health initiatives."
Commenting on the findings, Prof. Said Aboud, Director General of NIMR, said: "They demonstrate NIMR's commitment to leading the way in lymphatic filariasis and HIV elimination interventions in Tanzania." He praised the Tanzanian government's long-standing support through the Neglected Tropical Disease Control Program (NTDCP), which has been fighting these diseases for almost 20 years. This has made this research possible, which further advances the fight against HIV.
Co-author of the study Prof. Dr. med. Achim Hörauf, Director of the Institute of Medical Microbiology, Immunology and Parasitology at the University Hospital Bonn, adds: "Our results open up new possibilities for the prevention of HIV in affected regions. The therapy to combat lymphatic filariasis is not yet optimal. We are therefore continuing to research this topic and hope to bring at least some of the new drugs against this infection developed at the DZIF, among others, to approval in the coming years."
