Pitt Gets $11.8 Million to Develop Microbicide Films for HIV Prevention
(HealthNewsDigest.com) - PITTSBURGH, Sept. 15 – With the support of an $11.8 million, five-year federal grant, researchers at the University of Pittsburgh and their collaborators are developing a quick-dissolving vaginal film containing a powerful drug that reduces the risk of HIV infection, and they plan to begin testing it locally within a year.
A small film, like those used to deliver breath fresheners, could have several advantages over vaginal microbicide gels that are already being tested overseas, said Sharon Hillier, Ph.D., professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, senior investigator at Magee-Womens Research Institute (MWRI), and co-principal investigator of the new project, which is funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.
“Multiple films could be packaged in discrete cartridges without the need for refrigeration, making them portable and easier to store and distribute, and therefore probably cheaper than a gel,” she noted. “And, because they aren’t likely to be as messy as a gel, women might be willing to use them routinely, perhaps on a daily basis.”
The film would provide an alternative dosage form that preclinical testing suggests can release the drug faster and more efficiently than the gel version.
“An effective microbicide strategy should include different forms of the product,” Dr. Rohan said. “Women will have preferences, and having options to meet those needs will lead to greater use and therefore better protection from infection.”
In addition to tenofovir, the researchers will develop and test a second film containing another anti-HIV agent that has yet to be determined.
and from KTIV
University of Nebraska-Lincoln getting $3.8 Million for Vaginal Microbicide.
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - With help from $3.8 million in new funding, Nebraska researchers are working on production of a cream that would help women resist transmission of HIV, the AIDS virus.
The money for the work at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Biological Process Development Facility comes from the Mintaka Foundation of Medical Research, which is supported by the Wellcome Trust.
The UNL researchers are developing a process to manufacture a stable and affordable microbicide called 5P12-RANTES.
UNL says in a news release that the Biological Process Development Facility is using a molecule discovered by Mintaka researchers. The work will lead to a protein suitable for human testing as a vaginal cream.
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