HIV vaccine design programme launched
Shweta Pandey | 8:32 PM |
HIV Vaccine
,
HIV/AIDS
People in Asia living with HIV and who depend on affordable generic AIDS medicines to stay alive have impressed upon the Indian government to stand strong against European Union demands on the sensitive Intellectual Property (IP) chapter in ongoing Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations.
With an estimated 7,100 people getting infected with HIV every day and India home to 2.7 million HIV positive people, the government on Wednesday launched a new HIV vaccine design programme in the country. It was also announced that a new HIV Vaccine Laboratory will now come up in New Delhi.
Affordable medicines produced in India have played a major role in scaling up AIDS treatment to more than five million people across Asia, Africa and Latin America
M K Bhan, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, said that autonomous institute Translational Health Sciences and Technology Institute (THSTI) and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) have agreed to jointly establish, operate and fund an HIV vaccine design programme in the country.
The programme will primarily focus on one of the greatest scientific challenges of AIDS vaccine design and development: the elicitation of antibodies capable of neutralising a broad spectrum of circulating HIV variants — a problem that stems in large part from the almost unparalleled mutability of HIV. The programme will cost Rs 50 crore over five years.
Dr Rajat Goyal, director, country and regional programmes, IAVI, told The Indian Express that Rs 19.3 crore will be spent by IAVI on the programme. This is one of the key partnerships with the government to share scientific knowledge that will boost translational research, Goyal said.
THSTI director Dr Dinakar Salunke said there will be exchange of ideas in a mutually beneficial agreeement. A global search is underway to appoint scientists and directors. “There will be three principal investigators and 15 scientists,” Goyal added.
With an estimated 7,100 people getting infected with HIV every day and India home to 2.7 million HIV positive people, the government on Wednesday launched a new HIV vaccine design programme in the country. It was also announced that a new HIV Vaccine Laboratory will now come up in New Delhi.
Affordable medicines produced in India have played a major role in scaling up AIDS treatment to more than five million people across Asia, Africa and Latin America
M K Bhan, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, said that autonomous institute Translational Health Sciences and Technology Institute (THSTI) and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) have agreed to jointly establish, operate and fund an HIV vaccine design programme in the country.
The programme will primarily focus on one of the greatest scientific challenges of AIDS vaccine design and development: the elicitation of antibodies capable of neutralising a broad spectrum of circulating HIV variants — a problem that stems in large part from the almost unparalleled mutability of HIV. The programme will cost Rs 50 crore over five years.
Dr Rajat Goyal, director, country and regional programmes, IAVI, told The Indian Express that Rs 19.3 crore will be spent by IAVI on the programme. This is one of the key partnerships with the government to share scientific knowledge that will boost translational research, Goyal said.
THSTI director Dr Dinakar Salunke said there will be exchange of ideas in a mutually beneficial agreeement. A global search is underway to appoint scientists and directors. “There will be three principal investigators and 15 scientists,” Goyal added.
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