Avac Event

HIV Vaccine Research Update: What’s new and why it matters

Professor Linda-Gail Bekker is the Deputy Director of the Desmond Tutu HIV Centre, Chief Operating Officer at the Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation and Professor of Medicine at the University of Cape Town. She is also President-elect of the International AIDS Society.

Amongst many HIV prevention research activities that she leads, she is the principal investigator of the HVTN 100 vaccine trial, and in this webinar she discussed the latest in HIV vaccine research and the most recent updates on the plan to start a new vaccine efficacy trial later this year.

Listen / View Slides / Watch on YouTube / Watch Flash animation

Avac Event

Harnessing Antibodies for HIV Prevention and Treatment

John Mascola of the NIH Vaccine Research Center spoke about harnessing antibodies for HIV prevention and treatment. The recording includes a question and answer period with webinar participants.

For further background, click here to view his CROI plenary session. And this webinar is part of our post-CROI 2016 webinar series. Click to learn more.

Avac Event

HIV Vaccine Awareness Day 2016 Events

Global

  • Two live Twitter chats led by Youth Coalition Against AIDS (GYCA) to connect young people throughout Africa with HIV vaccine researchers and IAVI CEO to discuss HIV vaccine research issues.
  • “Know your rights” advocacy workshop, a one-hour online workshop led by ICW and facilitated by KAVI-ICR focusing on HIV vaccine R&D, to be attended by ICW women leaders around the world.

Kenya

  • Two-day HIV Research and Development Meeting led by WACI-Health for National Civil Society Leaders from the East and Southern African region; titled “Strengthening CSO Leadership in HIV Prevention Research & Development (R&D) in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA) Region” the meeting aims to accelerate civil society action on investments and innovation in research on AIDS vaccines and other biomedical prevention.
  • Mobilizing event organized by KAVI-ICR, to include a boxing match, a procession led by a band, VCT provision, and speeches and updates on HIV and HIV research.

South Africa

  • Community event conducted by Aurum Institute with a football match between Aurum MMC clinic and the Clinical Research Centre, Edutainment, VCT, updates on HIV vaccine R&D, and distribution of IEC materials.

Thailand

  • HVAD outreach led by Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences (AFRIMS), including the history of vaccine development globally and in Thailand, and an update on the P5 research program in Africa and its relation to vaccine trials in Thailand; attended by the mayor of Pattaya.


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Uganda

  • Grassroots and district level outreach events for fishing communities and high-risk young women to provide updates on currently available prevention options and the need for continued vaccine research—supported and led by IAVI-UVRI and MRC/UVRI.
  • Two television talk shows, one in English and one in Uganda providing updates on Uganda’s role in the global efforts to develop an HIV vaccine—supported by the Vaccine Interest Group.

United States

  • San Francisco Bay Area meeting with community members and providers to learn about and discuss current HIV vaccine research.

Avac Event

HIV 2016: HIV and Non-Communicable Diseases — Opportunities and Challenges

Where: The New York Academy of Sciences Conference Center in Manhattan

Presented by: UNAIDS and the Microbiology & Infectious Diseases Discussion Group at the New York Academy of Sciences

Speakers:

  • Steven G. Deeks, MD, University of California, San Francisc
  • Peter Godfrey-Faussett, BA, MBBS, DTM&H, FRCP (UK), UNAID
  • Maureen M. Goodenow, PhD, University of Florida Healt
  • James Hakim, MBChB, FRCP, University of Zimbabw
  • Mark Harrington, Treatment Action Grou
  • Peter Lamptey, MD, DrPH, MPH, FHI36
  • Linda Kupfer, PhD, Fogarty International Center, NI
  • Luiz Loures, MD, MPH, UNAID
  • Wafaa El Sadr, MD, MPH, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia Universit
  • Doug Webb, PhD, HIV, Health and Development Group, UNDP

Avac Event

Vaccines in Vivo: Advances in AIDS Vaccine Research

On May 18, advocates around the world observed HIV Vaccine Awareness Day (HVAD)—an annual commemoration of the need for and commitment to the ongoing search for a vaccine. AVAC convened a webinar—Vaccines in Vivo: Advances in AIDS Vaccine Research—and updated a number of materials, including our “HVAD Toolkit” for those interested in easy-to-digest research updates.

This year brought the launch of long-awaited initiation of clinical trials building on positive results from the RV144 “Thai” trial. This effort is led by the Pox-Protein Public-Private Partnership (P5), including the the HIV Vaccine Trials Network, who joined the webinar to provide a status update of their current vaccine research and development program. We also featured Janssen, part of Johnson & Johnson, to provide an overview of the research program they are moving forward that focuses on a cross-clade vaccine product.

In this webinar we discussed:

  • When and where the P5 trials are taking place?
  • What questions will be asked in the P5 “licensure track” trials—designed to bring a product to market, and what will the “research” track address? [Click here for AVAC’s explanation of the dual tracks.]
  • The pipeline beyond the P5 trials—including the candidate Janssen is developing
  • The role for advocates in southern Africa and around the world in terms of keeping AIDS vaccine research on track

Avac Event

Vaccine-O-Licious

Join Project ACHIEVE, Ballroom Throwbacks, Impulse Group NYC, AVAC, and Columbia University Medical Center on Monday, May 18th for the 11th annual Vaccine-O-Licious – #VOL2015 with a special Q&A and Meet and Greet with the cast from Triangle Web Series.

Get your free tickets here

Vaccine-O-Licious is an annual event designed to spread the word about HIV Vaccine Awareness Day.The event brought together a variety of performers uniting through dance and song.Peppermint hosted this exciting evening of entertainment, with a little education too!

Address: Santos Party House, 96 Lafayette St, New York, NY, 10013

Doors Open: 6:30 PM

Special Q&A with the cast of Triangle Web Series at 7 PM

Show Time: 7:30 PM

Avac Event

EATG Webinar 3: Microbicides and Vaccines

This series of three webinars, hosted jointly by EATG and AVAC, was designed to prepare and update EATG members for a special meeting on new developments in prevention that took place from January 23-25 in Brussels.

Avac Event

Breakthroughs and Big Questions: Webinar on AIDS vaccine research in 2014

This webinar, which coincided with observances of HIV Vaccine Awareness Day (May 18th) provided an update on follow-on trials that build on the positive findings from the RV144 Thai trial; what looks hopeful in early clinical and pre-clinical science; and why the field has increasing optimism about finding effective HIV-specific antibodies, the “holy grail” of anti-HIV immune responses. As always, your comments and questions help guide the discussion.

View the full webinar here.

Avac Event

Do we need a new paradigm for HIV vaccine development?

The Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative (CHVI) Research and Development Alliance Coordinating Office (ACO) invites you to join us for a webinar entitled “Do we need a new paradigm for HIV vaccine development?” with Dr. José Esparza who will give participants a greater understanding of some of the lessons learned after 30 years of HIV vaccine development.

This webinar will include a brief history of HIV vaccine development, some reflections about why it has been so difficult, and personal recommendations to accelerate the development of an HIV vaccine.

With José Esparza MD, PhD, formerly of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; and Adjunct Professor, Institute of Human Virology, University of Maryland School of Medicine

To register contact [email protected]

Avac Event

Global HIV Vaccine Awareness Day Events

On May 18 every year, HIV prevention advocates around the world raise their voices about the urgent need to continue the search for a safe and effective AIDS vaccine, and especially to recognize the enormous contribution of the thousands of volunteers who have participated in vaccine trials, without which this research would not be possible.

Here is a partial list of events that happened all around the world.

Where: Bangkok, Thailand
What: Lunchtime Briefing at Mahidol University

Details: “What’s new in HIV Vaccine?” with presentations by Dr Nakorn Premsri, Dr Supachai Rerks-ngarm, Dr Soachai Nitayaphan and Dr Robert O-Connell, moderated by Professor Punnee Pitisuttithum and introduced by Dean Professor Yaowalak Sukthana.

If you want to attend: 11.30am-1.00pm, Mahidol University, School of Tropical Medicine, 5th Floor, Chalermprakiat 50 years building

Where: New York City
What: Vaccine-o-licious: Free night of entertainment and education

Details: Vaccine-o-licious is an annual event designed to spread the word about HIV Vaccine Awareness Day. The event brings together a variety of performers uniting through dance and song. Peppermint, the NYC Queen of Vaccine, will host this exciting evening of entertainment, with a little education too!

If you want to attend: 6.30-10.30pm, Santos Party House, 96 Lafayette St. Click here to reserve your free tickets.

Where: Uganda
What: National print and radio features

Details:

Where: Kenya and Uganda
What: Media, civil society and community events

Details:
Kenya

  • May 14 – Media Breakfast Roundtable
  • May 15 – A Civil Society Leaders’ forum on advances in HIV Vaccine R&D
  • May 18 – A Community Event with fanfare and speeches in one research community in Kenya

Uganda

  • May 14 – Community medical outreach with Family Planning (FP), HIV Counseling and Testing (HCT) and general treatment
  • May 15 – Community Event, including community service (cleaning), sporting activities and speeches

Where: South Africa – clinical trial site communities of Nyanga and Masiphumelele
What: Community events

Details: From 18-22 May a series of events at and around research clinical trial sites will bring community stakeholders together to 1) commemorate people who have passed due to HIV related illnesses, and 2) present updates on HIV prevention research. The events will feature:

  • The progress with regards to HIV vaccines
  • The promise of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has as a prevention tool
  • Results of clinical studies that have both excited and disappointed the field:
    • FACTS – showed that experimental vaginal gel was not effective in preventing HIV among young women, and that
    • ADAPT – showed that when South African women take PrEP daily, they will be much less likely to acquire HIV from HIV-positive sex partners

Communities will be challenged to support through participation or encourage families, neighbors and all people in society to seek to understand and rally behind clinical research.