Professor Graeme Meintjes MBChB (UCT) FRCP (Glasgow) FCP (SA) DipHIVMan (SA) MPH (Johns Hopkins) PhD (UCT)

Wellcome Centre for Infectious Diseases Research in Africa (CIDRI-Africa)

DST/NRF SARChI Chair in Poverty-related Infections, Wellcome Trust intermediate Fellow, Professor of Medicine and an adult Infectious Diseases Physician, Department of Medicine, & Member, Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town; Honorary Clinical Lecturer, Imperial College London; Principal Investigator/Director of the South African Medical Research Council Clinical and Community HIV-TB Research Collaborating Centre (C2HTB)

Graeme Meintjes’ areas of research are the diagnosis, treatment and immunopathogenesis of the tuberculosis-associated immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (TB-IRIS), contributors to mortality in hospitalised patients with HIV-associated TB and interventions to address these, treatment of drug-resistant TB, treatment and immunology of cryptococcal meningitis and complications of antiretroviral therapy. His research team conducted a randomised placebo-controlled trial of prednisone for the treatment of TB-IRIS between 2005 and 2008 at GF Jooste Hospital in Cape Town. This was the first clinical trial of treatment for IRIS and demonstrated reduced hospitalisation in patients treated with prednisone. He was site Principal Investigator on the Cryptococcal Optimal ART Timing (COAT) trial that was conducted in Cape Town and two sites in Uganda. He is currently Principal Investigator of the EDCTP-funded PredART trial being conducted in Khayelitsha, that evaluates prednisone for TB-IRIS prevention in a randomised placebo-controlled trial enrolling patients with HIV-associated TB starting ART and at high risk for TB-IRIS. He is also conducting two observational cohort studies: one focussed on drug interactions, toxicity, and resistance to bedaquiline used in the treatment of XDR-TB (South African PI); the other aimed at defining contributors to mortality in hospitalised patients with HIV-associated TB that may be amenable to intervention (PI). He undertakes clinical work as a specialist at Groote Schuur Hospital and Khayelitsha Hospital.

Funding

1. Wellcome Trust Intermediate Fellowship in Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Awarded 2013-2017.  Title: "Defining interventions to reduce mortality in severe HIV-associated TB". Role: Personal fellowship.
2. South African DST/ National Research Foundation SARChI Chair in Lung Infection and Immunity in Poverty-Related Diseases at UCT (Grant 64787). Awarded for 4 years (2015-2018).
3. South African Medical Research Council TB-HIV Collaborating Centre: Clinical and Community HIV-TB Research Collaborating Centre (C2HTB) at UCT. Role: Principal Investigator/Director. Awarded for 3 years (2015-2017).
4. NIH/FIC. 1D71TW009760-01. Title: HIV associated tuberculosis training program. Awarded 2014-2016. Role: Principal Investigator for this planning grant.
5. NIH/NIAID. 1R01AI114304-01A1. Title: Safety, pharmacokinetics, and resistance to bedaquiline in XDR TB and HIV. Awarded 2015-2020. Role: South African PI.
6. National Research Foundation rating funding awarded in 2013 for 6 years (B2 rating).

Selected publications:

Meintjes G, Stek C, Blumenthal L, Thienemann F, Schutz C, Buyze J, Ravinetto R, van Loen H, Nair A, Jackson A, Colebunders R, Maartens G, Wilkinson RJ, Lynen L; PredART Trial Team. Prednisone for the Prevention of Paradoxical Tuberculosis-Associated IRIS. N Engl J Med. 2018 Nov 15;379(20):1915-1925.

Meintjes G, Lawn SD, Scano F, Maartens G, French MA, Worodria W, Elliott JH, Murdoch D, Wilkinson RJ, Seyler C, John L, van der Loeff MS, Reiss P, Lynen L, Janoff EN, Gilks C, Colebunders R; International Network for the Study of HIV-associated IRIS. Tuberculosis-associated immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome: case definitions for use in resource-limited settings. Lancet Infect Dis. 2008;8(8):516-23.

Meintjes G, Wilkinson RJ, Morroni C, Pepper DJ, Rebe K, Rangaka MX, Oni T, Maartens G. Randomized placebo-controlled trial of prednisone for paradoxical TB-associated immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome. AIDS. 2010;24(15):2381-90.

Meintjes G, Wilkinson KA, Rangaka MX, Skolimowska K, van Veen K, Abrahams M, Seldon R, Pepper DJ, Rebe K, Mouton P, van Cutsem G, Nicol MP, Maartens G, Wilkinson RJ. Type 1 helper T cells and FoxP3-positive T cells in HIV-tuberculosis-associated immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2008;178(10):1083-9.

Lawn SD, Kerkhoff AD, Burton R, Schutz C, van Wyk G, Vogt M, Pahlana P, Nicol MP, Meintjes G. Rapid microbiological screening for tuberculosis in HIV-positive patients on the first day of acute hospital admission by systematic testing of urine samples using Xpert MTB/RIF: a prospective cohort in SA. BMC Med 2015;13:192.

Boulware DR, Meya DB, Muzoora C, Rolfes MA, Huppler Hullsiek K, Musubire A, Taseera K, Nabeta HW, Schutz C, Williams DA, Rajasingham R, Rhein J, Thienemann F, Lo MW, Nielsen K, Bergemann TL, Kambugu A, Manabe YC, Janoff EN, Bohjanen PR, Meintjes G; COAT Trial Team. Timing of antiretroviral therapy after diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis. N Engl J Med. 2014 Jun 26;370(26):2487-98.

Lai RP, Meintjes G, Wilkinson KA, Graham CM, Marais S, Van der Plas H, Deffur A, Schutz C, Bloom C, Munagala I, Anguiano E, Goliath R, Maartens G, Banchereau J, Chaussabel D, O'Garra A, Wilkinson RJ. HIV-tuberculosis-associated immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome is characterized by Toll-like receptor and inflammasome signalling. Nat Commun. 2015 Sep 24;6:8451.

Contact details:

Clinical Infectious Diseases Research Initiative
Room WBN 2.09.5
Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine
UCT Faculty of Health Sciences
Observatory 7925

Tel:  +27 21 406 6075
Fax: +27 21 406 6796
Email: graeme.meintjes@uct.ac.za 

Alternate sites: www.cidri.uct.ac.za
https://www.predart.org/site/index

Group Members:

Collaborations:

Tom Harrison (St George's Hospital, London, UK)

Joseph Jarvis (London School of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene, UK)

David Boulware (University of Minnesota, US)

David Meya (Makerere University, Uganda)

Conrad Muzoora (Mbarara University, Uganda)

Anne O'Garra (National Institute of Medical Research, London, UK)

Lut Lynen (Institute of Tropical Medicine, Antwerp, Belgium)

James Brust (Albert Einstein College of Medicine, US)

Neel Gandhi (Emory University, US)

David Barr (University of Liverpool, UK)

* Only collaborators outside UCT are listed