AIDS scientists call for more gel research

Experts called today for urgent work on HIV-killing gels that could help protect women who are unable to rely on condoms, and Nelson Mandela told the world not to ignore tuberculosis in its battle against AIDS.

With research over the past two years showing that an AIDS vaccine is still a long way off, HIV-killing gels and creams, female condoms and diaphragms that could bolster prevention in the interim have become more of a priority.

“Developing an HIV vaccine is probably one of the most difficult challenges that biomedical science is confronting,” vaccine researcher Jose Esparza told a plenary session at the International AIDS Conference in Bangkok.

It is the biggest gathering ever of AIDS scientists, activists, policy-makers and HIV-infected people, also drawing international dignitaries like Mandela, the former South African president.

“The world has made defeating AIDS a top priority. This is a blessing, but TB remains ignored,” said Mandela, who turns 86 on Sunday.

Tuberculosis is one of the most common diseases that attacks AIDS patients after their immune system has been destroyed, with the lung disease causing from 15% to 40% of the three million AIDS deaths worldwide last year.

Mandela, who survived tuberculosis in prison during South Africa’s apartheid era, noted that the world has known the cure for TB for more than 50 years but that too many people are not being diagnosed and treated.

“We can’t fight AIDS unless we do much more to fight TB as well,” Mandela said to loud applause by scores of activists, admirers and staff at a packed news conference.

Much of today’s focus was on women, who are now nearly half of the world’s 38 million people living with HIV, and their infection rates in many regions are climbing much faster than men’s.

With many cultures denying women the power and confidence to demand that partners wear condoms, scientists are addressing ways women can protect themselves.

Vaginal gels, which can be applied long before intercourse and used without a partner’s knowledge, could be such a way, and Dr Zeda Rosenberg, chief executive of International Partnership for Microbicides, urged that more resources be poured into the effort.

“Unlike vaccines, there has been virtually no private sector investment in microbicide development,” Rosenberg said. “The science is there, the technology is there, and most of all, the passion and dedication of those in the field is palpable.”

Early versions of the gels and creams would attack a broad spectrum of bacteria, viruses and perhaps even human cells. Among complicating factors for developers are that microbicides also can kill cells in the vagina that help block HIV, Rosenberg said.