UC San Diego receives $12 million grant to study link between meth use and HIV

Paul Sisson, The San Diego Union-Tribune on Aug 17, 2026

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SAN DIEGO — Scientists at UC San Diego will receive a $12.3 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to study treating methamphetamine addiction and HIV using several medications in combination that, if successful, could address both conditions simultaneously.

Called the Brain-Focused Research on Antiretrovirals and Methamphetamine program, the research effort will dose patients with two long-lasting injectable medications, an antiretroviral to combat HIV and a second treatment composed of naltrexone, a drug that blocks the effects of opioids, and bupropion, an antidepressant often used in smoking cessation.

“There are people who are going to continue to use methamphetamine and who have HIV infection, and who typically have not been included in care, or who have been very difficult to maintain in care, and have been excluded from research,” said Dr. Igor Grant, the study’s co-investigator and director of the university’s HIV Neurobehavioral Research Program, in a statement. “We want them to get treatment; this study addresses a population that nobody has addressed before.”

Studies have shown that methamphetamine use significantly increases the risk of HIV infection, especially among men who have unprotected sex with other men.

“Because it is a stimulant, users may lose their judgment and engage in risky behaviors,” Grant said. “The drug also changes some immune mechanisms in a way that makes infection more likely.”

UCSD neuropsychologist Mariana Cherner is the study’s contact principal investigator, serving as its main point of outreach. Working with Owen Clinic, the university’s main hub for HIV care, Cherner said that the goal is to “improve the clinical care and brain health of people with HIV and active methamphetamine use” within five years.

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