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UK Government Announces First-time Support for Aeras 
� 8 Million for TB Vaccine Development | |
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The development of new tuberculosis vaccines was advanced significantly when the government of the United Kingdom announced on March 23, 2010 a grant to Aeras to support its TB vaccine development mission. The � 8 million, five-year grant from the Department for International Development is the first time the government of the UK has provided funding to Aeras. The funding comes during an economic climate that has forced many donors to pull back. This is a strong show of support for the role of vaccines in the battle against TB. Paul Sommerfeld, Chair of British-based not-for-profit organization TB Alert stressed that: "The BCG vaccine is ancient technology, predating even television. It is very welcome that the UK government is recognizing the crucial importance of developing a new, effective, and reliable vaccine against TB; as well as the contributions already being made by British researchers in collaboration with Aeras. With a new vaccine, the dream of eliminating TB by 2050 may become achievable."
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TB Vaccine Enters Testing in People Living with HIV
Phase IIb of AERAS-402/Crucell Ad35 | |
A Phase IIb study testing the safety of AERAS-402/Crucell Ad35 in adults infected with HIV is underway at the Aurum Institute in Klerksdorp, South Africa. All Aeras-sponsored TB vaccine candidates have been or will be tested for safety in people living with HIV in countries with high TB prevalence. Ten study volunteers have been enrolled in the first stage of the trial, which will enroll 26 volunteers. This is the first study testing this TB vaccine candidate among this study population.
Tuberculosis is the leading cause of death among people living with HIV in Africa and Asia. People with HIV living in countries with high HIV prevalence are 20 times more likely to develop TB than those who are HIV-negative. According to global estimates from the World Health Organization (WHO), one in four TB deaths globally is HIV-related. In 2008, there were an estimated 1.4 million new cases of TB among people living with HIV and 456,000 deaths. Seventy-one percent of people with TB in South Africa are co-infected with HIV.
AERAS-402/Crucell Ad35 has been previously tested for safety in healthy adults in the United States and in adults and infants in South Africa.
� learn more about the vaccine |
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| Regina Rabinovich Appointed to Aeras Board of Directors
Infectious Disease Expert Brings Global Health Perspective | |
Aeras is pleased to announce that Regina Rabinovich, MD, joined the Aeras Board of Directors this month. Dr. Rabinovich is director of the Global Health Program's Infectious Diseases team at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Dr. Rabinovich has extensive experience in developing and evaluating vaccines to prevent infectious disease in children, with an emphasis on diseases of the developing world.
� read more |
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Building the Clinical Trial Research Profession
SATVI and Aeras collaborate with University Faculty with NIH Support | |
Clinical researchers from around the world, including Aeras partners, participated in joint training programs designed to build and strengthen the clinical trials research profession. Two courses, offered at the basic and advanced levels, held February 15 to March 5 in Cape Town, South Africa, attracted 30 participants from three continents. Named the South African Infectious Disease Clinical Research Training Program (SAIDCRTP), this marks the fourth year of the five-year program. Physicians, scientists, nurses, pharmacists and medical technologists working in clinical research received instruction in Good Clinical Practice and Research Ethics, as well as Biostatistics and Infectious Disease Epidemiology. The program is funded by Fogarty International Center at the US National Institutes of Health, and the program is implemented by South African Tuberculosis Initiative (SATVI) with faculty from University of Cape Town and George Washington University and support from Aeras.
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World TB Day 2010
WHO Report Shows Higher Rates of TB Drug Resistance and Calls for Innovation to Eliminate TB
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| The World Health Organization (WHO) reports in a new publication that drug-resistant tuberculosis rates are now at record levels. The report, released in the run up to World TB Day 2010, highlights the urgent need for innovative new tools in the battle against TB. Also on World TB Day, world-renowned R&B musician Craig David joined with WHO as a Goodwill Ambassador Against Tuberculosis, and Aeras, along with global TB advocates, participated in World TB Day awareness raising events on three continents.
Read more about World TB Day and Aeras' activities in Africa, Europe and North America:
� read Aeras' statement
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Events
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June 2010
1-4 |Durban, South Africa
September 2010
21-24 |Tallin, Estonia
A Framework for Introducing Improved TB Vaccines to the World Community
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