CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
Encouraged by an initial trial, Italy wants to launch a large-scale human test of its HIV vaccine in Africa in the hope of having it ready for the market by 2011, the project's chief researcher said on Tuesday. Barbara Ensoli of Italy's National Health Institute began a small-scale trial involving 47 volunteers at four different clinics in Italy in 2003 and was aiming for results in 2006.
"The information we've gathered allows us to affirm that the vaccine is safe and well tolerated in all subjects," Ensoli told a press conference to announce plans for Phase II of the trials. "We also had much better immunogenicity results than we expected, so we're going to move to Phase II ahead of schedule." Immunogenicity is the strength and breadth of an immune response.
The trial should finish by 2010 or 2011, Ensoli said.
Around 30 HIV vaccines are being tested in small-scale human trials around the world. Only a dozen have moved to Phase II, when the focus shifts from safety to effectiveness, according to the U.S.-based AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition. An effective preventative vaccine is seen as the best long-term hope for ending the AIDS pandemic, but one is not expected to reach market for many years.
Ensoli's vaccine is unique in that it acts on tat, a protein essential for the replication of the virus, instead of trying to block the virus itself. The vaccine has been tested in both preventative trials and therapeutic trials to see if it can be used to treat people already infected with HIV as well as prevent the disease. In the initial tests, the vaccine was safe in 100% of volunteers. They had strong immune responses in more than 80% of the experiments, Ensoli said.
Ensoli and Italy's ISS are in talks with the European Union and private investors for the 50 million euros needed to fund the second-phase trial that would be broadened in Italy and launched in South Africa. In total, the trials would involve between 500 and 2,000 volunteers. (Reuters)
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Meet all 37 of the queer women in this season's WNBA
April 17 2024 11:24 AM
Here are the 15 gayest travel destinations in the world: report
March 26 2024 9:23 AM
21+ steamy photos of Scotland’s finest gay men in Elska Glasgow
February 01 2024 10:07 PM
More Than 50 of Our Favorite LGBTQ+ Moms
May 12 2024 11:44 AM
Conjoined twins Lori Schappell and trans man George Schappell dead at 62
April 27 2024 6:13 PM
Latest Stories
Kamala Harris rides wave of Democratic energy at kickoff event in Wisconsin
July 23 2024 3:36 PM
'Devastated:' A six-week abortion ban will go into effect in Iowa next week
July 23 2024 2:28 PM
Four hours, 44,000 Black women, and one Zoom call
July 23 2024 2:17 PM
Record 1.2 million people show out for Cologne’s Pride parade
July 23 2024 10:51 AM
Here's how far-right activist Leonard Leo helped fund Bud Light boycott
July 23 2024 10:27 AM
Elon Musk’s comments about his trans daughter prove why she doesn’t speak to him
July 23 2024 9:16 AM
Nancy Pelosi endorses Kamala Harris for president
July 22 2024 4:07 PM