The National Institutes for Health (NIH) gave the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in 2023 a $408,375 federal grant to study how testosterone therapy affects transgender men’s susceptibility to HIV infection.
According to federal spending records, NIH gave UAB the $408,375 grant in June 2023. The study ends in May.
The study is titled: “The effects of masculinizing gender-affirming hormone therapy for transgender men on susceptibility to HIV-1 infection modelled ex vivo in cervical mucosal tissue”
“There are approximately 1.3 million transgender adults in the US, and about 467,000 of these individuals (~36%) are transgender men. Transgender men are individuals who were assigned female at birth but identify as male. Trans men may transition physiologically from female to male by receiving masculinizing hormone therapy and/or hysterectomy. Those in the trans male community participate in diverse sexual behaviors and lifestyles resulting in unique risks to STIS, especially HIV-1. Currently, there is a significant knowledge gap of the impact of HIV-1 on trans men, including limited knowledge regarding the effects of testosterone therapy on HIV-1 susceptibility and acquisition. Over 70% of trans men receive testosterone to promote masculine characteristics and reduce secondary female sex characteristics. Trans men treated with testosterone report symptoms of vaginal dryness and loss of elasticity, which increase mucosal tissue breaks, which contribute to increased risk of HIV-1 transmission in trans men,” a description of the study said.
The central hypothesis of the research proposal is that testosterone “alters cellular and immunologic responses in the cervical mucosa that affect susceptibility to HIV-1 infection.”
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