Thailand to Develop Two Vaccines Targeting HIV Subtype E
Thailand plans to develop two additional HIV vaccines for human trials within the next two years, Agence France-Presse reports. The vaccines, called BCG-gag E and Vaccinia-gag E, target HIV subtype E, the strain of the virus most prevalent in Thailand. In a statement received Monday, Thai Health Minister Sudarat Keyuraphan said that the two vaccines have already shown "impressive results" in tests conducted on monkeys, effectively "reactivating" the monkeys' immune systems and reducing their viral load. Keyuraphan said that the vaccines are expected to be ready for human trials by 2004. The announcement comes one month after the Thai government announced that it would launch "the world's largest HIV vaccine trial" in November. That trial will last five years and involve 16,000 volunteers (Agence France-Presse, 8/12).
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