What chlamydia research is happening at LSHTM?
This first Spotlight is on recent research at the School related to chlamydia. This is particularly timely as the results of the Australian Chlamydia Control Effectiveness Pilot (ACCEPt) were published last month (see External Featured Publication below), in which a cluster-randomised controlled trials showed no effect on chlamydia prevalence of opportunistic chlamydia testing in primary care.  
At the School, Professor Cari Free is the PI for the on-going NIHR-funded safetxt Trial, a single blinded randomised controlled trial to evaluate the effect of a safer sex intervention delivered by text message on chlamydia infection at 12 months. 
Dr. Suzanna Francis was a Co-PI on the iGugu Study, a study conducted in the Africa Health Research Institute (AHRI) demographic surveillance site in rural KwaZulu-Natal. This study conducted home-based sampling to obtain the prevalence of curable STIs among young people aged 15 to 24 years residing within the AHRI demographic surveillance site - a high prevalence of chlamydia was found among young women.
Professor Martin Holland is working a Chlamydia trachomatis vaccine in the TracVac Consortium building on the results of a phase I clinical trial of an adjuvanted Chlamydia trachomatis vaccine developed by Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen. The immunological routes of C. trachomatis protection and pathogenesis in both the eye and urogenital tract are believed to share common features.
Read more about LSHTM STI-related research on the STIRIG website.

The first STIRIG Seminar! Mycoplasma genitalium - the "silent" emerging superbug by Jason Ong on Tuesday 11th December - 1pm in LG8 a lunchtime seminar. This is seminar is co-sponsored by STIRIG and the LSHTM AMR Centre.

STIRIG Student Logo Competition!
We are delighted to introduce our logo competition for all students at the School, both in London and around the world. The deadline for entries is 15 December 2018 and all entries should be sent to stirig@lshtm.ac.uk. See here for more information and the competition rules.

Missed the STIRIG Launch during LSHTM Week? 
The Launch featured Teodora Wi from the World Health Organization, introduced by LSHTM's Director, Professor Baron Peter Piot. Recordings of the STIRIG Launch can be accessed through the STIRIG Launch webpage.

Call for applications for an STI PhD studentship. The Sexually Transmitted Infections Research Foundation (STIRF) has awarded a 3-year PhD studentship at the University of York, called “HPV vaccination for preventing cervical and other HPV-associated cancers: Comparing the knowledge and understanding of factors influencing initiation and completion of the UK and Ugandan school-based vaccination programme”.

STI & HIV 2019 World Congress, Joint Meeting of the 23rd ISSTDR & 20th IUSTI Congress 14-17 July, 2019 in Vancouver, Canada

The Sexual Health Improvement Programme (SHIP), which Dr Emma Harding-Esch is Honorary Co-Director of, co-hosted with BASHH an open meeting in Bristol on “Preparing Sexual Health Services for the Challenge of Antimicrobial Resistant (AMR) Bacteria”. Read about the meeting and recommendations.

The STIRIG resource webpage has links for STI-related guidelines, trainings, conferences, professional societies and more!

Cao, B; Zhao, P; Bien-Gund, C; Tang, W; Ong, JJ; Fitzpatrick, T; Tucker, JD; Luo, Z; (2018) The Web-Based Physician is Ready to See You: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Survey of Physicians Using a Mobile Medical App to Evaluate Patients With Sexually Transmitted Diseases in China. JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 6 (10). e10531. ISSN 2291-5222 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2196/10531

Oakeshott, Pippa; Kerry-Barnard, Sarah; Fleming, Charlotte; Phillips, Rachel; Drennan, Vari M; Adams, Elisabeth J; Majewska, Wendy;Harding-Esch, Emma; Cousins, Emma C; Planche, Tim; +3 more... (2018) “Test n Treat” (TnT): a cluster randomised feasibility trial of on-site rapid Chlamydia trachomatis tests and treatment in ethnically diverse, sexually active teenagers attending technical colleges. Clinical Microbiology and Infection. ISSN 1198-743X (In Press)

Gallagher, KE; Kelly, H; Cocks, N; Dixon, S; Mounier-Jack, S; Howard, N; Watson-Jones, D; (2018) Vaccine programme stakeholder perspectives on a hypothetical single-dose human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine schedule in low and middle-income countries.Papillomavirus research (Amsterdam, Netherlands). ISSN 2405-8521 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pvr.2018.10.004

Wang, Q; Ma, X; Zhang, X; Ong, JJ; Jing, J; Zhang, L; Wang, LH; (2018) Human papillomavirus infection and associated factors for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia in women living with HIV in China: a cross-sectional study. Sexually transmitted infections. ISSN 1368-4973 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/sextrans-2018-053636

Li, S; Roy, P; Travesset, A; Zandi, R; (2018) Why large icosahedral viruses need scaffolding proteins. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. ISSN 0027-8424 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1807706115

Torondel, B; Sinha, S; Mohanty, JR; Swain, T; Sahoo, P; Panda, B; Nayak, A; Bara, M; Bilung, B; Cumming, O; +2 more... (2018)Association between unhygienic menstrual management practices and prevalence of lower reproductive tract infections: a hospital-based cross-sectional study in Odisha, India. BMC infectious diseases, 18 (1). p. 473. ISSN 1471-2334 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-018-3384-2

Beksinska, A; Prakash, R; Isac, S; Mohan, HL; Platt, L; Blanchard, J; Moses,
S; Beattie, TS; (2018) Violence experience by perpetrator and associations with HIV/STI risk and infection: a cross-sectional study among female sex workers in Karnataka, south India. BMJ open, 8 (9). e021389. ISSN 2044-6055 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-021389

Huntington, SE; Burns, RM; Harding-Esch, E; Harvey, MJ; Hill-Tout, R; Fuller, SS; Adams, EJ; Sadiq, ST; (2018) Modelling-based evaluation of the costs, benefits and cost-effectiveness of multipathogen point-of-care tests for sexually transmitted infections in symptomatic genitourinary medicine clinic attendees. BMJ open, 8 (9). e020394. ISSN 2044-6055 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-020394

Park, M; Jit, M; Wu, JT; (2018) Cost-benefit analysis of vaccination: a comparative analysis of eight approaches for valuing changes to mortality and morbidity risks. BMC medicine, 16 (1). p. 139. ISSN 1741-7015 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12916-018-1130-7