# Understanding Viral Suppression for Newly Diagnosed HIV+ Men to Inform Implementation of TasP and U=U

> **NIH NIH R01** · HUNTER COLLEGE · 2021 · $262,245

## Abstract

Project Summary
Gay and bisexual men and other sexual minority men (SMM) in the U.S. are burdened by a high and
disproportionate rate of HIV infection. Improving outcomes of the HIV Care Continuum through to maintaining
viral load (VL) suppression is associated with a significant reduction in the sexual transmission of HIV and
significantly better long-term health outcomes. However, little research provides insight into the preventable
structural, psychosocial, and behavioral factors that influence durable VL suppression during early infection
that can be used in developing effective early intervention strategies. Moreover, the successful implementation
of TasP and U=U messaging is a necessary component of the strategy to end the HIV epidemic, but rigorous
research is needed to address real-world implementation issues, including safety concerns and perceived
barriers among key stakeholder populations. We aim to address these issues with two studies grounded in the
Social Ecological Model (SEM) to simultaneously examine both VL suppression and implementation barriers
surrounding U=U from multiple levels of influence. Specifically, Aim 1 of the study is to examine time to initial
VL suppression and patterns in VL rebound to better understand the dynamic nature of VL suppression and
use the SEM along with an intersectional minority stress framework to longitudinally investigate structural,
psychosocial, and behavioral factors associated with VL suppression among SMM to better understand risk
and resilience. Next, Aim 2 is to examine how adherence and perceived VL status are associated with
objective VL status and whether concordance between perceived and actual VL suppression influences sexual
risk compensation as captured by event-level sexual behaviors and STI infections. Finally, Aim 3 is designed to
understand ongoing barriers to implementing U=U from the perspectives of the three populations critical to its
successful implementation among SMM—namely, SMM living with HIV, HIV-negative SMM, and HIV care
providers. To do so, Study 1 (Aims 1 and 2) will leverage two LITE cohorts to recruit 250 SMM newly
diagnosed with HIV during the course of the studies—we will follow these men for two years immediately
following diagnosis, collecting home-based dried blood spot for VL on a monthly basis to examine the dynamic
nature of VL suppression. In addition to VL and self-reported data, the study will include objective indicators of
adherence and care engagement as well as qualitative interviews. The goal of Study 1 will be to identify risk
and resilience factors that influence VL suppression and can be used to guide future intervention development
(Aim 1) while simultaneously addressing understudied safety concerns of implementing U=U with regard to
unintended risks (Aim 2). In Study 2 (Aim 3), we will use focus groups conducted three times over five years to
inform implementation of U=U messaging. Achieving the aims of the proposed study will provide key ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10131760
- **Project number:** 5R01AI150502-02
- **Recipient organization:** HUNTER COLLEGE
- **Principal Investigator:** H. Jonathon Rendina
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $262,245
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-03-24 → 2021-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10131760

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10131760, Understanding Viral Suppression for Newly Diagnosed HIV+ Men to Inform Implementation of TasP and U=U (5R01AI150502-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10131760. Licensed CC0.

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