The BC-CfE Research Laboratory advances our understanding of HIV and how it can best be treated. The cutting-edge facility, housed at St. Paul’s Hospital, acts as hub for genome research, receiving blood samples from across BC, Canada (not including Quebec) and countries around the world. By putting HIV under the microscope and analyzing the genome sequence of the virus, researchers are able to identify clusters of the disease, telling a story of transmission. The lab also provides clinical services, including in the critical area of HIV drug resistance testing that helps to ensure patients are receiving the most effective treatments.
Read on to learn of a few of the remarkable milestones the BC-CfE lab has achieved.
1997: Presents evidence on the utility of HIV drug resistance testing in routine patient care. This opens the door to treatments more targeted to the individual patient, leading to improved health outcomes.
From 1999 to today: Rolls out the first comprehensive HIV resistance-testing program for British Columbians. The service is also provided for testing blood samples from across Canada (not including Quebec) and international jurisdictions. The BC-CfE lab has become a centre for HIV testing, which remains a critical component of the BC-CfE-pioneered Treatment as Prevention strategy to end AIDS in Canada. On a global scale, the lab contributes to achieving the UNAIDS 90-90-90 Target to reach 90% of those living with HIV through testing.
2002: Demonstrates the toxicity of early antiretroviral medications, such as d4T (also known as stavudine or Zerit) on live mitochondria. D4T is a class of nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs). In 2009, the World Health Organization recommended against the use of d4T because of its long-term, irreversible side effects.
From 2004 to today: Extends access to HIV resistance testing services to include resistance to newer treatment agents such as the protease inhibitors and integrase inhibitors, still widely used today.
2005: Demonstrates the factors that pre-dispose individuals to develop HIV resistance. Such research can help in tailoring better, more effective treatments for patients before they begin treatment regimens.
2008: Develops and validates methods to identify individuals who will respond to Maraviroc, the first approved CCR5 antagonist. This enables testing methods worldwide and for routine patient care usage in Canada.
From 2010 to today: Develops and distributes software, pioneered at the BC-CfE, for improved automated analysis of HIV sequences. Called “ReCall” it is now used worldwide, including in many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and South America. The innovative tool automatically processes DNA sequences obtained from lab samples, significantly cutting down on the workload in labs. The software allows for more automated personalized HIV therapies and enables those in more resource-limited countries to access up-to-date testing methods.
2012: Documents a precipitous decline in HIV resistance in BC concomitant with the success of the implementation of Treatment as Prevention¨ through the BC-CfE’s Drug Treatment Program (DTP). In BC, a person receives immediate and universal access to antiretrovirals through the DTP immediately upon diagnosis. BC is the only province to implement TasP¨ and the only one to see a consistent decline in new HIV cases.
2014: Extends evidence of the utility of HIV drug resistance testing to extremely low viral loads, a practice that was previously thought impossible. The BC-CfE Lab introduced testing for the hepatitis C virus (HCV).
2015: Demonstrates simple laboratory-based methods for measuring adherence to HIV medications, effectively using blood samples to determine if adherence has occurred with a patient. This helps to better understand and measure the impacts of treatment adherence at the viral level.
The BC-CfE Laboratory Program will continue to advance our knowledge of HIV through its research initiatives. Learn more at our event on October 27: Influential experts from the BC-CfE will explore the local, national and global impact of our research as part of the UBC Centennial. All are welcome!