WHO and UNAIDS congratulate CAPRISA, a designated UNAIDS Collaborating Centre for HIV Prevention Research, on the successful completion of the study.  The full statement is available here: http://www.unaids.org/en/KnowledgeCentre/Resources/PressCentre/PressReleases/2010/20100719_PS.asp.

The HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN) issued a statement on the CAPRISA 004 microbicide trial.  The full statement is below.

The Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA) reports that researchers have achieved an important scientific breakthrough in the fight against HIV and genital herpes with a vaginal gel that significantly reduces a woman's risk of being infected with these viruses.&

"This is a historic day for HIV prevention research. The CAPRISA 004 results are the first clinical evidence that a microbicide gel can help to prevent sexual transmission of HIV infection," said AVAC Executive Director Mitchell Warren, reacting to the results of the landmark microbicide trial presented today at the International AIDS Conference in Vienna.  The full AVAC statement is available below.

The Bill & Melinda Gates foundation issued a highly targeted strategy for HIV, which states that the "foundation’s number-one global health priority is discovering and introducing vaccines for infectious diseases."  Click the link below to read the full strategy. 
 

A new report from AVAC surveys the state of biomedical HIV prevention research, including the first evidence of vaccine-induced protection in humans and the emergence of ARV-based prevention—and provides strategic recommendations for moving forward in a time of constrained resources and faltering commitment to ending AIDS.  The announcement is below.
 

The International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) announces the appointment of Margaret McGlynn, former President of Global Vaccines and Anti-infectives at Merck, to its board of directors.

The U.S. Military HIV Research Program (MHRP) and more than 30 U.S. and international collaborators are initiating intensive follow up studies on RV144 in an effort to find the correlates of protection.  Samples from RV144 are being distributed to laboratories around the world.  To read more about the planned RV144 research, please click here.
 
 

Claire Keeton of the Sunday Times (South Africa) blogged about lessons from recent HIV vaccine efficacy trials.  Below is her full report, which can be found here: http://blogs.timeslive.co.za/hiv/2010/05/2