Rachel Rutishauser

CD8 cell fitness predicts who benefits most from antibody-based cure strategies Over the last few years a number of studies aiming to cure HIV or at least achieve long-term viral suppression off antiretroviral therapy (ART) have produced tantalising results. These studies have given participants one or both of the long-acting versions of two broadly neutralising antibodies (bnAbs), 3BNC117 (teropavimab) and 10-1074 (zinlirvimab), sometimes in conjunction with immune boosting oral drugs.

CD8 cell fitness predicts who benefits most from antibody-based cure strategies

Community health project in Kenya and Uganda dramatically cuts new HIV infections Large-scale study finds that simplifying delivery of prevention medication and improving connections to clinics is key

Study in 80,000 people in Uganda and Kenya shows 70% reduction in risk of HIV infection. The secret? Community health workers offering testing at home, simplified access to PrEP and PEP, follow up with smart phone app that connects people to clinics. Remarkable.
www.science.org/content/arti...

Metabolic quiescence of naive-like memory T cells precedes and maintains antigen-specific T cell memory - Nature Immunology Schober and colleagues show that effector CD8+ T cells undergo metabolic shutdown, CD8+ central memory T cells are the most metabolically active, and naive-like memory T cells are quiescent during the...

New work from our lab, hot off the press in Nature Immunology (@natureportfolio.nature.com)!

How do human T cell responses diversify — and how does this lead to durable protection after vaccination?

Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Press release: www.fau.eu/2026/02/news...

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At #CROI2026 today, Katharine Bar helped advocates decode Sharon Lewin’s Opening Session on #cure, spotlighting emerging approaches like using the #HIV protein Tat to “wake up” latent virus so the immune system can see it & then eliminate it.

For explainer videos on cure, visit, hivcurecompass.org.

Atlas-guided discovery of transcription factors for T cell programming - Nature A comprehensive atlas platform integrating transcriptional and epigenetic data enables more precise engineering of T cell states, accelerating the rational design of more effective cellular immunother...

New study—and exciting collaboration with Wei Wang, Cong Liu (UCSD), and Kay Chung (new lab at UNC)—that provides a platform for designing T cells into specific states. We identified state-selective TFs for CD8 T cell states that enable “recipes” for cell engineering! www.nature.com/articles/s41...

I am SO incredibly excited to announce the launch of a global list of Inspiring Black Scientists. You can use this list to nominate and connect with researchers. Please share and join us in highlighting these outstanding scientists for #BlackHistoryMonth and beyond!

www.wiley.com/en-us/resear...

Recapitulating the qualities of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells from spontaneous controllers journals.lww.com/co-hivandaid... (open access review) #HIV @rrutishauser.bsky.social

New Insights from Perinatal HIV: A Way Forward for HIV Cure Research Rajesh T Gandhi, Ronald J Bosch, Ann Chahroudi; New Insights from Perinatal HIV: A Way Forward for HIV Cure Research, The Journal of Infectious Diseases, ,

New Insights from Perinatal #HIV: A Way Forward for HIV Cure Research academic.oup.com/jid/advance-... (open access) @jidjournal.bsky.social

Boosting SIV-specific CD8+ T cell responses prior to ART interruption extends time to SIVmac239 rebound www.jci.org/articles/vie... (open access) @jci.org

Population-scale sequencing resolves determinants of persistent EBV DNA - Nature Population-scale WGS reveals genetic determinants of persistent EBV DNA, linking immune regulation—especially antigen processing and MHC class II variation—to EBV persistence and heterogeneous di...

Today in @nature.com, we describe how discarded reads in biobank-scale WGS can help resolve the genetic predictors and consequences of Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) infection.

Wonderful working with @ryandhindsa.bsky.social @sherrynyeo.bsky.social @erinmayc.bsky.social

www.nature.com/articles/s41...

In this difficult period in the fight against HIV these news are particularly welcome. Together we can end HIV/AIDS pandemic 💪

Very excited our study is out!

🧵 here: bsky.app/profile/rrut...

This is figure 1, which shows longitudinal follow-up.

A paper in Nature reports the details of a 60-year-old male individual from Germany who achieved sustained HIV remission after a stem cell transplant, the seventh-known case reported to date. go.nature.com/4rNjedx #medsky 🧪

Combination Immunotherapy May Help T Cells Fight HIV An HIV vaccine plus broadly neutralizing antibodies and an immune-stimulating drug helped control HIV after stopping antiretrovirals.

8/ POZ magazine:

www.poz.com/article/comb...

yes— totally agree. All of the differences between infections are shaped by the complexities/unique features of the viruses and their in vivo activity. We have a lot more to learn … luckily for us, studying antiviral T cell responses is really fun! :)

yes, we love this paper of yours! :) it makes a lot of sense

Probably not surprisingly to you, amongst pre-existing HIV-specific CD8 T clonotypes during ART that recognize the same pMHC, after a T cell therapeutic vaccine or rebound, some expand much better than others. Lots of reasons why this could be, it’s something we are trying to understand better.

On ART, or even in elite controllers off of ART (in both case, who knows how much antigen they are seeing actively) - yes, sorted multimer responses are very oligoclonal (we have validated up to 8). If there is higher antigen exposure (eg a period off ART), the clonotypes may change.

‘Is this my last pill ever?’ UCSF therapy offers patients a hint at a cure for HIV Seven of 10 volunteers kept HIV at bay for months after stopping meds, a rare result scientists call a major step toward a functional cure.

gift link: www.sfchronicle.com/health/artic...

HIV treatment in small UCSF study shows promise Researchers tout effectiveness of method that wouldn’t require lifetime of medication

7/ San Francisco Examiner:

www.sfexaminer.com/news/public-...

Hey Jeff! Yes this is a concern. I think the end goal isn’t necessarily to achieve low-level viremia or even “elite” control. Hopefully as we learn more about effective *in vivo* immune responses against HIV (which have been hard to ID) we can to do even better (ie target residual infected cells).

11/ HIV is an extraordinarily challenging pathogen. Demonstrating that the immune system *can* be manipulated to improve control of HIV and identifying a correlate of that control in vivo in people is both important for the field and also gives us something concrete to build on.

7/ @demisandel.bsky.social (1st PhD student in my lab!) made the key observation: early in rebound, before viral loads diverged, participants who went on to control HIV to low levels had a larger expansion of activated, cycling CD8+ T cells in the blood compared to those who did not control rebound.

The U.S. Is Funding Fewer Grants in Every Area of Science and Medicine A quiet policy change means the government is making fewer bets on long-term science.

Essential reading if you care about the health of scientific inquiry in the US

www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

Antibodies and T cells join forces for sustained HIV remission Two studies suggest that T cells with stem-cell-like properties could work with antibody therapies to control HIV after a person stops taking antiviral pills.

6/ Nature News and Views:

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Path to HIV cure includes Seattle scientists Two new studies provide insights into a possible cure for HIV, and feature the work of researchers from the UW and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.

5/ The Seattle Times:

www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news...

Long-Term HIV Control: Could this Combination Therapy Be the Key? UCSF researchers have made strides toward an HIV cure, showing experimental immunotherapy can help control the virus without long-term antiretroviral therapy (ART). In a small study, 7 of 10 participa...

4/ UCSF:

www.ucsf.edu/news/2025/12...

How some treatments can lead to a ‘functional cure’ for HIV Specific class of immune cells help keep virus at bay for months or years—even in the absence of drugs

3/ Science:

www.science.org/content/arti...

Small study shows a promising path toward HIV cure Antiretroviral drugs that prevent HIV and keep it in check have been transformative, but a cure has been a long-sought goal.

2/ The Washington Post (gift link):

www.washingtonpost.com/science/2025...

‘Is this my last pill ever?’ UCSF therapy offers patients a hint at a cure for HIV Seven of 10 volunteers kept HIV at bay for months after stopping meds, a rare result scientists call a major step toward a functional cure.

Thoughtful coverage of our study from various outlets. 🧵

1/ The SF Chonicle: www.sfchronicle.com/health/artic...