Dezzutti Research Group

Principal Investigator: Charlene Dezzutti, PhD

Sexual transmission of HIV is the primary route of viral spread. Yet, despite being nearly thirty years into the HIV epidemic, the mechanism of HIV transmission remains poorly understood.

Dr. Dezzutti conducts side-by-side comparative assessments of microbicide candidates that will be used in clinical trials. The work done in the Dezzutti laboratory focuses on understanding:

1. The mechanism(s) of transmission.

  • Attempting to determine the first HIV-infected cells, the lab has developed cervical and colorectal tissue explant systems to study HIV transmission ex vivo.

2. The factors that influence transmission.

  • The lab has an active program studying the interaction(s) between sexually transmitted infections and HIV in acute in vitro model systems and tissue explant systems. The lab also studies the influence of hormones such as estrogen and testosterone on HIV-1 infection.

3. The ways to prevent transmission of HIV.

  • By examining innate immune factors found in genital secretions that could be augmented or exploited for microbicide development, the lab is evaluating microbicides that may be utilized in human clinical trials to prevent sexually acquired HIV.

Lab Members

Ratiya Pamela Kunjara Na Ayudhya, MT ASCP
Laboratory Manager
pkunjara@mwri.magee.edu
Pam oversees the daily operations of the lab and is one of the Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) laboratory contacts for the clinical sites operating with the Microbicide Trials Network.

Nicole Billitto, BSc
Lab Technician
billittonm@mwri.magee.edu
Nicole works on new microbicide products that are formulated in gels and rings. She is also testing alternative methods to evaluate possible microbicide product cellular toxicity. For the Microbicide Trials Network studies, Nicole also processes and tests clinical samples.

JD Lynam, BSc
Lab Technician
lynamj@mwri.magee.edu
JD tests microbicide formulations for safety and efficacy against HIV for the Microbicide Trials Network. He is developing our qPCR and confocal imaging methods. JD also processes and tests clinical samples.

Julie Russo, BSc
Lab Technician
russojr@mwri.magee.edu
Julie is studying rectal-specific microbicide formulations of antiretroviral drugs for safety and efficacy against HIV. She also processes and tests clinical samples for the Microbicide Trials Network.

Kevin Uranker, BSc
Lab Technician
urankerkm@mwri.magee.edu
Kevin is testing gel and film formulations of antiretroviral drugs for safety and efficacy against HIV.

Selected Publications

  • Cummins Jr. JE, Villanueva JM, Evans-Strickfaden T, Abner SR, Shekou S, Bush TJ, Green TA, Lennox JL, Wright T, Folks TM, Hart CE, & Dezzutti CS. Detection of infectious HIV-1 in female genital secretions using a short-term culture method. J Clin Microbiol, 41:4081-88, 2003. PMID: 12958229
  • Dezzutti CS, James VN, Ramos A, Sullivan ST, Siddig A, Bush TA, Grohskopf LA, Paxton L, Subbarao S, & Hart CE. In vitro comparison of topical microbicides for the prevention of HIV transmission. Antimicrob, Agents Chemother, 48:3834-44, 2004. PMC521884, PMID: 15388443
  • Guenthner PC, Secor WE, & Dezzutti CS. Trichomonas vaginalis-induced epithelial monolayer destruction and HIV-1 replication: Implications for the sexual transmission of HIV-1. Infect Immun, 73:4155-60, 2005. PMC1168584, PMID: 15972505
  • Abner SR, Guenthner PC, Guarner J, Hancock KA, Cummins Jr, JE, Fink A, Gilmore GT, Staley C, Ward A, Ali O, Binderow S, Cohen S, Grohskopf LA, Paxton L, Hart CE, & Dezzutti CS. A human colorectal explant culture to evaluate topical microbicides for the prevention of HIV infection. J Infect Dis, 192:1545-56, 2005. PMID: 16206069
  • Cummins Jr JE, Christensen L, Lennox JL, Bush TJ, Wu Z, Malamud D, Evans-Strickfaden T, Siddig A, Caliendo AM, Hart CE, & Dezzutti CS. Mucosal innate immune factors in the female genital tract are associated with vaginal HIV-1 shedding independent of plasma viral load. AIDS Res Hum Retroviruses, 22:788-95, 2006. PMID: 16910835
  • Cummins Jr JE, Guarner J, Flowers L, Guenthner PC, Bartlett J, Morken T, Grohskopf LA, Paxton L, & Dezzutti CS. Preclinical testing of candidate topical microbicides for anti-HIV-1 activity and tissue toxicity in a human cervical explant culture. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, 51:1770-79, 2007. PMC1855576, PMID: 17353237
  • Ham A, Cost M, Sassi A, Dezzutti CS, & Rohan LC. Targeted delivery of PSC-RANTES for HIV-1 prevention using biodegradable nanoparticles. Pharmaceutical Res, 26:502-11, 2009. PMID: 19002569

Publications on PubMed

View Publications on PubMed

Links

Microbicide Trials Network

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