The vaccine candidate is based on HIV subtype C, the most prevalent subtype of the virus in southern and eastern Africa, and was developed by Seattle based Targeted Genetics.
The tgAAC09 vaccine candidate is designed as a preventive vaccine, intended to protect people uninfected with HIV from contracting the disease. It is designed to elicit two different types of immune responses, an antibody response and a cell-mediated response.
The trial is sponsored by the International AIDS vaccine initiative, and will be conducted at the Uganda virus research institute (UVRI) in Entebbe, Uganda, with Dr Pontiano Kaleebu acting as the principal investigator.
“We are pleased that Uganda continues to play a leading role in the testing of promising HIV vaccine candidates,” said Dr Pontiano Kaleebu. “A vaccine is the world’s best hope to end the spread of a disease that infects 14,000 men, women and children worldwide every day.”
Parallel trials of the vaccine are currently underway at three sites in South Africa. There are also plans to evaluate the vaccine candidate at a fifth site, in Zambia, pending regulatory approval.