, /PRNewswire/ -- Although has the largest number of people living with HIV worldwide, strides have been made in controlling the epidemic, especially in the reduction of HIV incidence, testing, and treatment. Equipped with MGI's advanced sequencing tools and technologies, researchers from the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) and University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) are inching closer to finding the answer to the natural control of HIV infection, leading to improved health outcomes and quality of life amongst South Africans. With better understanding of HIV, awareness of the stigma and related inequalities has also been on a rise.
Every year on Zero HIV Stigma Day (21 July), an observance in honor of Prudence Mabele, the first Black South African woman to publicly share her HIV status, the world is united to take actions against HIV stigma and challenge its impact. With initiatives such as this one by SAMRC and UKZN, more individuals and communities alike are being empowered to move beyond labels and redefine HIV narratives. According to the latest survey by the Human Sciences Research Council, in 2022, there were approximately 7.
8 million people afflicted with HIV in , the highest absolute number of people living with HIV globally. Yet despite having the largest genetic diversity in the world, African human genome sequences represent the lowest of all the human genomes that have been sequenced worldwide. There is a dire need to leverage genomics to back up and sca.
