A new high-risk, high-reward NIAID grant to UMBC chemist Herana Kamal Seneviratne aims to strengthen HIV prevention by explaining why PrEP protects some people more effectively than others. Building on his group’s prior research into the negative side effects of HIV drugs—especially on the brain—the project will examine how the key PrEP medications tenofovir and emtricitabine are activated in colon tissue, a critical site for transmission. The findings could support better dosing and more consistent protection.

 More than four in five physicians and dentists believe applicants who disclose a history of substance use on medical or dental school applications risk hurting their chances of admission.