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Fifteen years ago, Retrovirology was amongst the first open-access journals to be established through Biomed Central, instigated by our late Founding Editor Dr. Kuan-Teh Jeang. Since then, in what seemed like a rather daring move to be paper-free, Retrovirology has witnessed the exponential growth of open access journals that have changed the landscape of scientific publishing and communications. As was pointed out by the staff editors in PLoS Biology [1], the infancy of open access journal was a very different time from our present day, which was before smartphones, prior to most of the digital social media platforms and at a time when we had only begun to learn about the completed DNA sequences from the Human Genome Project [1]. Dr. Kuan-Teh Jeang (known universally as Teh) was an accomplished virologist and chief of the molecular virology section of the Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology at the NIAID NIH intramural program. Teh was a prolific scientist who authored more than 300 publications before he left us at the tragically young age of 54. Through open access publishing, Teh saw an opportunity to create a platform for retrovirologists to publish their findings in a timely manner as well as actively disseminating these publications to the community. Many of us vividly remember the enthusiastic emails that Teh sent us regarding any news or hot-off the press publications from Retrovirology.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention has evolved significantly over the years where clinical trials have now demonstrated the efficacy of oral PrEP, and the field is scaling-up implementation. The WHO and UNAIDS have made PrEP implementation a priority for populations at highest risk, and several countries have developed guidelines and national plans accordingly, largely based on evidence generated by demonstration projects. PrEP presents the opportunity to change the face of HIV prevention by offering a new option for protection against HIV and disrupting current HIV prevention systems. Nevertheless, as with all new technologies, both practical and social requirements for implementation must be taken into account if there is to be sustained and widespread adoption, which will also apply to forthcoming prevention technologies. Defining and building success for PrEP within the scope of scale-up requires careful consideration. This review summarises where the PrEP field is today, lessons learned from the past, the philosophy and practicalities of how successful programming may be defined, and provides perspectives of costs and affordability. We argue that a successful PrEP programme is about effective intervention integration and ultimately keeping people HIV negative.

When Kuan-Teh Jeang (‘Teh’ to everyone) made the bold and prescient decision to join the earliest wave of pure online academic publishing and founded the journal Retrovirology, Mark Wainberg was one of the simplest and most obvious choices for him to invite to join the editorial team. Mark’s long established and highly respected position in the field of HIV and AIDS research added enormously to the embryonic journal’s immediate credibility and stature. Mark’s seminal achievements in recent years have been in antiretroviral therapy and viral resistance mechanisms but, in a publishing career on HIV spanning 30 years and over 550 publications, there were few areas of HIV research that he did not investigate and he brought that enormous range of expertise and experience to Retrovirology. His many achievements in the field will be described in detail by others, including his trainees and colleagues from Canada, in a shortly to be published obituary in this journal. When Teh himself was so sadly taken from us it was again Mark’s stature and reputation and his boundless enthusiasm and energy that was so important in maintaining the momentum and profile of the Journal as he took on the role of Co-Editor in Chief.