The Gilead pharmacist has announced the winners of the 7th edition of the Gilead Scholarships for Biomedical Research 2018, where doctors Maria José Buzón and Mar Riveiro have been awarded. For the Dra. Buzón, responsible for Translational HIV Research in the VHIR Infectious Diseases Research group, is the second time that he receives this Scholarship in the field of HIV research. The first time was in 2017. The grant is euros 50,000 that will be used to investigate the role of myeloid-derived suppressive cells in the maintenance of HIV reservoirs.In the case of the Dra. Mar Riveiro, the main researcher of the VHIR Hepatic Diseases Research Group and a doctor attached to the Hepatology Service of the Vall d'Hebron University Hospital, has been awarded in the area of liver diseases and the euros 50,000 of the Scholarship will target the implementation of the screening of the hepatitis C virus in the immigrant population that is first visited in the PROSICS (International Health Program of the ICS).In this edition, 18 projects have been awarded in the areas of hepatology, hemato-oncology and HIV with a total of euros 900,000.The role of myeloid-derived suppressive cells in the maintenance of HIV reservoirsIn this work, our goal is to elucidate the functional role of MDSC in the maintenance of HIV reservoirs. We will use flow cytometry and FISH in lymph nodes to characterize the distribution and location of MDSC during the infection, and its relation to the viral reservoir measured by qPCR. The MDSC functional capabilities of different cohorts of patients infected with HIV and the molecular mechanism involved in immunosuppression will be studied using cell proliferation, cytotoxicity tests and RNA-seq. In addition, we will use the flow / FISH technology to elucidate the MDSC function after viral reactivation and we will try new approaches to inhibit the MDSC function. "This proposal will define the role of MDSC in the maintenance of HIV reservoirs, opening new therapeutic perspectives for the elimination of HIV latent," he concludes.Screening of the hepatitis C virus in the immigrant populationThe presence of latent reservoirs is the main obstacle to eradicating HIV. Antiretroviral therapy inhibits HIV replication but does not cure viral infection. For this reason, in recent years, the new therapeutic strategies aimed at reducing the latent infection by inducing the viral reactivation have been transferred to the clinic. However, these approaches have not managed to eliminate HIV either.Myeloid-derived suppressive cells (MDSC) have emerged strongly as one of the major immune cells with potent immunosuppressive activity, and their accumulation has been associated with unresolved inflammation in pathological conditions. The existence of an immunoregulatory mechanism that protects and regulates the latent HIV reservoir is a fundamental issue with important clinical implications that remain unresolved. "We start from the hypothesis that the immune tolerance promoted by MDSC against reactivated HIV from the latent reservoir plays a critical role that prevents the elimination of HIV," says Dr. BuzónIn order to achieve the goal of the World Health Organization (WHO) to eliminate infection by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) in 2030, screening and treatment strategies are required in populations with high prevalence and lower access to the healthcare system, like immigrantsIn this sense, our collaborative project with the Center for International Health and Communicable Diseases Drassanes Vall d'Hebron and the Infectious Diseases Service is to "implement the screening of HCV infection in all immigrants that are visited for the first time at the PROSICS Barcelona (International Health Program of the ICS), facilitating the diagnosis of the infection and staging of the liver injury by performing a reflex test of the HCV viral load as well as fibrosis biomarkers (APRI, FIB-4) in the same analytical determination", explains Dr. Mar Riveiro. By working together with the NGOs hosted by these subjects, it will seek to improve access and therapeutic adherence to immigrants diagnosed with chronic hepatitis C.