Correlation of Antibody Responses to a Peptide Antigen gp120-C5/gp41 with HIV Disease Progression.

Antibodies to the carboxy-terminal constant (C5) region 5 of the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein gp120 have previously been associated with slow disease progression. This is one of the regions on gp120 that interact with the transmembrane glycoprotein, gp41, anchoring it to the viral and infected cell membrane. This study analyzed humoral responses to a novel heterodimeric peptide construct comprising the C5 region and a compatible region on gp41.

Transmitted drug resistance is still low in newly diagnosed human immunodeficiency virus type 1 CRF06_cpx-infected patients in Estonia in 2010.

The presence of transmitted drug resistance (TDR) in treatment-naive HIV-1-positive subjects is of concern, especially in the countries of the former Soviet Union in which the number of subjects exposed to antiretrovirals (ARV) has exponentially increased during the past decade. We assessed the rate of TDR among newly diagnosed subjects in Estonia in 2010 and compared it to that in 2008. The study included 325 subjects (87% of all subjects tested HIV positive from January 1 to December 31, 2010).

Piloting HIV rapid testing in community-based settings in Estonia.

Background: In the European Union it is estimated that up to 30% of HIV-infected people are not aware of their status. Community-based testing (CBT) models are implemented to increase the uptake of HIV testing.

Aims: The aim of this project was to assess the feasibility and acceptance of HIV rapid testing in CBT settings in Estonia to identify non-clinical recruitment venues for people more likely to engage in high-risk behaviours.

Emerging transmitted drug resistance in treatment-naïve human immunodeficiency virus-1 CRF06_cpx-infected patients in Estonia.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 transmitted drug resistance in the drug-naïve population is of growing relevance in Estonia, where the number of antiretroviral (ARV) treatment-experienced subjects has been exponentially increasing during the last 10 y. The aim of this study was to estimate the rate of transmitted drug resistance among newly diagnosed subjects in Estonia in 2008. Genotypic resistance testing for viral genomic RNA was conducted for 201 subjects tested HIV-positive between 1 April and 30 November 2008.

Predominance of a rare type of HIV-1 in Estonia.

An earlier study has indicated that a complex recombinant HIV-1 strain dominates the epidemic in Estonia. The objective of this study was to further investigate the molecular epidemiology and genetic structure of HIV-1 in Estonia. Most of the investigated individuals became infected after August 2000 when HIV-1 started to spread rapidly among Estonian intravenous drug users (IDUs).

Two viral strains and a possible novel recombinant are responsible for the explosive injecting drug use-associated HIV type 1 epidemic in Estonia.

HIV-1 infection has been rare in Estonia. In 2000, an explosive epidemic among injecting drug users was detected in the Eastern border region, resulting in 3603 newly reported cases by the end of 2003. The molecular epidemiology of the outbreak was studied to establish whether the Estonian epidemic is linked to the epidemics in Eastern Europe.

Sequential changes in hepatitis A virus genotype distribution in Estonia during 1994 to 2001.

Hepatitis A virus (HAV) isolates from a large outbreak and from non-outbreak cases in Estonia were characterized by sequencing the aminoterminal VP1 region. From January 1998 to December 1999, a total of 1084 cases of hepatitis A were reported to the Harjumaa-Tallinn and Ida-Virumaa Health Protection Services in Estonia. The attack rate was highest among males aged 15-29.