Gates Foundation pledges $360 million for HIV vaccine research

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has announced a five-year, $360 million pledge in support of HIV vaccine research, including substantial funding to the Global HIV/AIDS Vaccine Enterprise, an alliance of groups conducting such research, The Wall Street Journal reports. The enterprise was formed last year by leaders from the Group of Eight industrialized nations to help speed HIV vaccine development by coordinating basic science research and prioritizing funding for vaccine candidates that look the most promising or are the furthest along in the development pipeline. The Gates Foundation also on Tuesday pledged about $337,000 to an upcoming conference focusing on HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria that will be held March 22-24 in Nairobi, Kenya.