Registration Cohort

Known as the PrEPVacc Registration Cohort, the study was set up to prepare a population of HIV-negative individuals at risk of acquiring HIV for possible participation in the PrEPVacc HIV vaccine efficacy trial, and in Uganda was conducted at the Unit’s clinical research site in Masaka. Between July 2018 and March 2021 onwards, HIV sero-negative adults aged 18–45 at high risk of HIV infection were identified through HIV counselling and testing from sex-work hotspots along the trans-African highway and fishing communities along the shores of Lake Victoria.

The main aim was to identify HIV-negative adults at high risk of HIV infection and prepare them for participation in a phase IIb HIV prophylactic vaccine trial at sites in Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda — a trial designed to determine the efficacy of two HIV prophylactic vaccine regimens and to compare Truvada and Descovy as PrEP. Participants received quarterly HIV counselling and testing, six-monthly risk-behaviour assessment, and linkage to care for those testing positive.

The cohort ran between 18 July 2018 and 13 October 2022 and generated valuable data on HIV incidence and its associated demographic and behavioural risk factors, offering critical insights to guide future HIV prevention research. The dataset is managed and made available by the MRC/UVRI and LSHTM Uganda Research Unit, with limited access to anonymised data permitted subject to access conditions.