Publications by authors named "Ayy Hsieh"

Article Synopsis
  • Chronic/latent viral infections, particularly in people living with HIV (PLWH), can accelerate immunological aging, and the study investigated their impact on leukocyte telomere length (LTL).
  • The research involved 377 participants across various age groups, genders, and HIV statuses, finding that PLWH and older females tend to harbor more chronic/latent viruses, which is linked to shorter LTL.
  • Ultimately, the study indicates that persistent viral infections may contribute to immunological aging in PLWH and highlights the need to explore potential health issues associated with this later in life.
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Objectives: We sought to better understand factors associated with ovarian aging in women with HIV (WWH).

Design: HIV has been associated with diminished fertility, younger age at menopause, and shorter leukocyte telomere length (LTL), a marker of cellular aging. We herein examine cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between LTL, anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), and HIV.

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Objectives: Given the success of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) in treating HIV viremia, drug toxicity remains an area of interest in HIV research. Despite newer integrase strand transfer inhibitors (InSTIs), such as dolutegravir (DTG) and raltegravir (RAL), having excellent clinical tolerance, there is emerging evidence of off-target effects and toxicities. Although limited in number, recent reports have highlighted the vulnerability of mitochondria to these toxicities.

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Article Synopsis
  • About 1.1 million children are exposed to HIV antiretrovirals in utero, with potential safety concerns, particularly regarding integrase strand transfer inhibitor (InSTI) dolutegravir, which showed links to neural tube defects in infants.
  • Researchers studied the impact of second-generation InSTIs on human embryonic stem cells and fetal development in pregnant mice, finding that at both subtherapeutic and therapeutic doses, some InSTIs caused negative effects like reduced cell counts and increased cell death.
  • The findings stress the need for more research on the long-term safety and effects of InSTIs on embryonic development, especially as these drugs become more common among women of reproductive age.
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There is limited evidence regarding the potential risk of untargeted iron supplementation, especially among individuals who are iron-replete or have genetic hemoglobinopathies. Excess iron exposure can increase the production of reactive oxygen species, which can lead to cellular damage. We evaluated the effect of daily oral supplementation on relative leukocyte telomere length (rLTL) and blood mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) content in non-pregnant Cambodian women (18-45 years) who received 60 mg of elemental iron as ferrous sulfate ( = 190) or a placebo ( = 186) for 12 weeks.

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Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) and whole blood mitochondrial DNA (WB mtDNA) content are aging markers impacted by chronic diseases such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. We characterized the relationship between these two markers in 312 women ≥12 years of age living with HIV and 300 HIV-negative controls. We found no relationship between the two markers cross-sectionally.

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Objectives: Combination antiretroviral therapy has largely restored the lifespan of persons living with HIV. Data suggest early comorbidities of aging in this population. Past studies focused on men; limited data exist regarding the prevalence of dyslipidaemia in women living with HIV (WLWH).

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Changes in whole blood (WB) mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) content are associated with health and disease. Platelet-derived mtDNA can confound WB mtDNA content measurements. From a sample of 44 volunteers, we show that platelet mtDNA content and platelet:leukocyte ratio are both dependent predictors of WB mtDNA content, but that platelet count itself is not.

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The gradual accumulation of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations is implicated in aging and may contribute to the accelerated aging phenotype seen with tobacco smoking and HIV infection. mtDNA mutations are thought to arise from oxidative damage; however, recent reports implicate polymerase γ errors during mtDNA replication. Investigations of somatic mtDNA mutations have been hampered by technical challenges in measuring low-frequency mutations.

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Mitochondrial DNA copies per cell (mtDNA content) can fluctuate with cellular aging, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial dysfunction, and has been investigated in cancer, diabetes, HIV, and metabolic disease. mtDNA content testing in both clinical and basic settings is expected to increase as research uncovers its biological relevance. Herein, we present a novel mtDNA content assay developed on monochrome multiplex real-time quantitative PCR (MMqPCR) principles.

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Background: Increased cell-free DNA levels are associated with poor health outcomes, and cell-free mitochondrial DNA (cf-mtDNA) has proinflammatory properties. Given that HIV infection is associated with chronic inflammation, we investigated the relationship between cf-mtDNA and proinflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the context of HIV infection. We also optimized separation of cell-free plasma from blood.

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Long-term outcomes of perinatal exposure to maternal antiretroviral therapy in HIV-exposed uninfected (HEU) children are unknown. However, both HIV antiretroviral therapy and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been associated with mitochondrial alterations. Leukocyte mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) content can serve as a marker for mitochondrial dysfunction.

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Telomere length (TL) measurement is central to many biomedical research, population, and epidemiology studies, with promising potential as a clinical tool. Various assays are used to determine TL, depending on the type and size of the sample. We describe the detailed optimization of a monochromatic multiplex real-time quantitative PCR (MMqPCR) assay for relative TL using the LightCycler 480.

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