University of Washington-Senegal HIV-2 Study Group

A multidisciplinary collaboration of the 

UW & Senegal, West Africa


Principal Investigators:

    Seattle: Geoffrey S. Gottlieb, MD PhD 

    Dakar: Moussa Seydi, MD               

Goals: A comprehensive understanding of HIV-2 infection

Mission Statement:

The overarching goals of our group are to develop an integrated program to further our ability to provide evidenced-based, potent antiretroviral therapy (ART) to people living with HIV-2. Compared to HIV-1, HIV-2 infection is characterized by a longer asymptomatic stage, lower plasma viral loads, slower decline in CD4 count, decreased mortality rate due to AIDS, lower rates of mother to child transmission, and lower rates genital shedding and sexual transmission. In West Africa, where both HIV-1 and HIV-2 co-circulate, between 1-2 million individuals have been infected with HIV-2 and a significant proportion  are co-infected with both HIV-1 and HIV-2. Despite the relatively attenuated disease course of HIV-2, a significant minority of untreated individuals will progress to clinical AIDS or death without ART and as will the majority of those dually infected with HIV-1 and HIV-2. Through local and global initiatives, HIV-2 active antiretroviral therapy is becoming increasingly available in resource-limited West Africa. Studies are needed how to best utilize ART and care for people living with HIV-2.