Hope Mafaranga

  PrEPVacc  announced today that it "has stopped further vaccinations as there is little or no chance of the trial demonstrating vaccine efficacy in preventing HIV acquisition". Its  pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) trial is set to continue. While IAS – the  International AIDS Society  – is disappointed at this outcome, we believe that this provides us with lessons to drive HIV vaccine research and development (R&D) with urgency. “We cannot and will not lose hope that the world will have an effective HIV vaccine that is accessible by all who need it, anywhere,” IAS Executive Director Birgit Poniatowski said. “A vaccine remains one of our most powerful tools to reach and change the lives of vulnerable communities and key populations in the most affected parts of the world.”  PrEPVacc, an African-led, European-supported HIV prevention study, has been running in four sites in Uganda, Tanzania and South Africa since 2018. With 1,513 participants (men and women aged 18-40 years

  On this HIV Vaccine Awareness Day, IAS – the   International AIDS Society   – calls for the re-engagement of all stakeholders, especially in Europe, in funding HIV vaccine research and development (R&D).  After more than 40 years since HIV was discovered, there have been breakthroughs in curbing acquisition through pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and antiretroviral therapy (ART). However,  1.5 million people  acquired HIV in 2021 – one million above the 2020 global targets  for ending the AIDS epidemic  – and a quarter of the 38.4 million people living with HIV globally do not have access to treatment. A vaccine remains the most effective prevention method and is still elusive.   Between 2019 and 2020, funding globally for HIV  preventative vaccine R&D decreased  by 5.5% or USD 46 million. In comparison, European funding decreased by 31%, significantly undermining pathways to an effective vaccine.  “We call on Europe to not abandon the quest for an effective HIV vaccine. The

  Researchers used aerial and satellite imagery, as well as machine learning, to map the carbon stock of every overstory tree in Rwanda—the first such inventory in the world. https://eos.org/articles/mapping-rwandas-trees-from-above