IAVI Announces Funding For Taiwan HIV/AIDS Research Team

Main Category: HIV / AIDS
Article Date: 23 Oct 2008 - 10:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   view / write opinions   rate article

The International AIDS Vaccine Initiative has awarded a $612,923, three-year grant to an HIV/AIDS research team in Taiwan, the Central News Agency reports. The research team is led by Academia Sinica President Chi-Huey Wong and was awarded the grant for its work to develop a defense against HIV/AIDS, according to the Central News Agency. Wong and colleagues developed a new compound, called glycodendron, that has proven effective at stopping HIV from infecting rodents by preventing the virus from attaching to dendritic cells and prompting the immune system to produce antibodies to attack HIV. According to the Central News Agency, the researchers hope the compound can be used in new HIV/AIDS treatments and to develop a safe and effective vaccine.

Wong said that the IAVI grant will help foster increased attention to and engagement in the development of an HIV/AIDS vaccine (Wu, Central News Agency, 10/20).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.

© 2008 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation.  All rights reserved.