Reuters: New vaccine, long-acting drug trials buoy hopes in HIV fight
“Researchers announced the launch of two big studies in Africa on Thursday to test a new HIV vaccine and a long-acting injectable drug, fueling hopes for better ways to protect against the virus that causes AIDS…” (Hirschler, 11/30).

Reuters: Hopes for HIV vaccine buoyed by start of second big trial
“…The start of the new trial involving 2,600 women in southern Africa means that for the first time in more than a decade there are now two big HIV vaccine clinical trials taking place at the same time. The new study is testing a two-vaccine combination developed by Johnson & Johnson with the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The first vaccine, also backed by NIH, began a trial last November…” (Hirschler, 11/30).

Reuters: GSK starts big African study of injectable drug to prevent HIV
“ViiV Healthcare, GlaxoSmithKline Plc’s HIV unit, said on Thursday it started an African study to evaluate a long-acting injectable drug for the prevention of HIV infection in sexually active women. The cabotegravir study seeks to enroll 3,200 women aged 18 to 45 years from sub-Saharan African countries, ViiV Healthcare said in a statement. The HPTN 084 Phase III study will evaluate injections given every two months, ViiV Healthcare said. The study is being conducted through public-private funding by ViiV Healthcare, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the company said…” (Patnaik, 11/30).