@arbovmom.bsky.social discussed how comes some arboviruses aren't transmitted by certain mosquito species and whether or not these barriers are set in stone 🦟 #BEACON

Daan elucidated how treatment with the HIV-1 capsid inhibitor Lenacapavir, in addition to serve as a "miracle" drug for #HIV prevention and therapy, might make infected cells more visible to the immune system, potentially aiding #HIVcure efforts ✨️ #AcademyofMedicalSciences

Saskia presented how SARS-CoV-2 escapes from neutralisation via anti-spike antibodies and inhibition via ISGs by spreading via direct cell-cell contacts, indicating another clever strategy of the virus 😎 to evade our immune system #COVID-19

Dom introduced our first efforts to establish a platform to study #Oroupouche virus entry for rapid risk analysis and functional characterisation of new emerging strains at CL2 level 📢 @hpruezi.bsky.social

@lstmnews.bsky.social
👾 Virology on top! With 1 poster and 4 talks, the team had a blast at this year's @microbiologysociety.org MicroSoc event in Belfast.

@lstmnews.bsky.social goes #MicroSoc! Phase separation between bacteriologists and virologists is an artifact just for the picture 😊 @microbiologysociety.org

Heading home after a rich day full of science at @institutpasteur.bsky.social. Warm thanks to @julianbuchrieser.bsky.social and Olivier Schwartz for the kind invite!

Synergistic latency reversal by the SMAC mimetic AZD5582 and iBET JQ1, combined with Nef ablation, facilitates immune-mediated elimination of latently HIV-1-infected T-cells Recent breakdowns in the supply chains of antiretroviral therapy (ART) to lower income countries, where they are needed most, underpin the pressing need for an accessible and scalable HIV cure that wo...

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Type I interferons sensitise HIV-1-reactivating T-cells for NK cell-mediated elimination despite HDACi-imposed dysregulation of innate immunity Shock-and-kill is one of the most advanced, yet unrealized, concepts towards establishment of HIV-1 cure. Treatment with latency-reversing agents (LRAs), including histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDAC...

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

3/ in "shock-and-kill" approaches, as we found (link to studies below). Indeed, the authors don't seem to generate evidence for detectable reduction of the reservoir size, and (temporal) virus control seems to be achieved predominantly by T-cell responses. #HIVCure is not around the corner!

2/ special profile from start on which may potentially have facilitated things). I really do wonder if the chosen LRA, the TLR9 agonist lefitolimod, modulates cell surface Env presentation (important for ADCC), and/or apoptosis. Many (but not all!) LRAs do, and paradoxically impede "kill"

1/ I agree that (even functional) #HIVCure will probably need a multi-component and staged strategy, and is not close. This multi-pronged approach shows, 18 months post ATI, a delay of viral rebound in 6/9 participants, and remission in 1/9 participants (though the latter seems to display a

Definitely exciting and even more puzzling. Note that the patient himself was heterozygous for CCR5delta32. So either there is a dosage effect of truncated CCR5, and/or (more provocative) the CCR5 genotype is less relevant than we all anticipated and the allo-SCT per se does large part of the trick?

Last month, my team had the great pleasure of hosting a fantastic guest PhD student, Bridget Fisher, from Sharon Lewin's lab at The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, for our collaborative work on #HIVCure. Looking fwd to continuing this exciting joint study. Very well done Bridget!

Absolutely privileged to have met Michel Sidibé, AU Envoy for African Medicines Agency, former @unaids.org Director & Mali Health Minister. Our chat spanned topics ranging from #HIVcure development to implementation. Should a cure be discovered, do we have systems to ensure equitable access?

Dylan Postmus giving a presentation on his work at the RetroPATH meeting

View from a boat ride on the Neckar River in Tübingen, Germany.

Had an excellent time at this year’s #RetroPATH2025 meeting in Tübingen, Germany, talking about my work on #HIVcure. Many thanks to @agschindler.bsky.social and Daniel Sauter for hosting. Especially interesting was the variety of talks on #HERVs @goffinetlab.bsky.social @lstmnews.bsky.social

I am very pleased to be hosting @goffinetlab.bsky.social from @lstmnews.bsky.social tomorrow, sponsored by @infect-net.bsky.social

📣: Feodor-Lynen lecture hall @genecenter-lmu.bsky.social
🕙 18.9. 1:00 pm

Many thanks Prof Henry Mwandumba and Prof Kondwani Jambo & teams for the warm welcome and hospitality at Malawi Liverpool Wellcome Research Programme, Blantyre. We had fantastic discussions and developed prospects for collaboration on #HIVCure. A truly inspiring visit!

We had a great time hosting three college students - Sadie, Chloe and Isobel - as part of the In2STEM programme with Dr Kelly Johnston. With @dylanpostmus.bsky.social, they learned about our work in #HIVCure, drug development pipelines and assay design. Check out the programme here: in2scienceuk.org

Congratulations to @juliaprigann.bsky.social for being awarded the 2025 CFAR Excellence in Basic/Translational Science Award!
cfar.ucsf.edu/user/11703

En route pour Lyon. Je me réjouis de présenter quelques snapshots de notre recherche @lstmnews.bsky.social sur le Chikungunya virus #CHIKV et son interaction avec le système immunitaire inné! #JFV2025

An inspiring meeting #KSHIV25 in Durban ends. Great presentation by @dylanpostmus.bsky.social on why many LRAs for #HIVCure are imperfect. A pleasure meeting the next promising generation of African ECRs, speaking to old friends and making new ones. Plus the daily sunrise over Indian Ocean!

Shout-out to @dylanpostmus.bsky.social speaking at #MicroBio25. Just in time before heading to Keystone Symposium on #HIVCure keysym.us/KSHIV25
Stay tuned!

Happy to be part of the EU consortium DEFENDER @horizoneu.bsky.social and contribute to discovery of novel entry factors of #CHIKV, laying the ground for development of antiviral therapies @lstmnews.bsky.social

#InternationalWomensDay2025
“When I’m sometimes asked 'When will there be enough?’ and I say ‘When there are nine,’ people are shocked. But there'd been nine men, and nobody's ever raised a question about that.”
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
1933-2020

It was a pleasure attending #GfV2025 in Hamburg today and chairing the Innate Immunity Plenary today together with @sparrerlab.bsky.social with fantastic keynotes by Adolfo García-Sastre, @scheellab.bsky.social and Michaela Muller-Trutwin. Thanks for coming!

Due to high interest in the role, the ad will be kept live until March 9th:

Deadline for submission of applications for the role of Chair in Immunology at @lstmnews.bsky.social is March 2nd 👇

Join me at the LSTM in Conversation Webinar with Barry Atkinson @ukhsa.bsky.social and @gsrajahram.bsky.social in less than two days!
Sign up via the link in the description 👇

Of course, costs for Skilled Worker VISA application and NHS surcharges will be covered by LSTM.