‘African scientists should lead in developing an Aids jab for Africa’

PrEPVacc Trial Director Dr Eugene Ruzagira has co-authored an Opinion article in The East African headlined ‘African scientists should lead in developing an Aids jab for Africa‘, published on World Aids Day, today, 1 December.

If one of the lessons of vaccine development has been the need for constant innovation, the other surely has been the importance of ultimately providing an efficacious vaccine that is fit for purpose for the people who need it, that its delivery and rollout are both culturally sensitive and locally appropriate. Vaccine preparedness is everything and local infrastructure is key.

Together with Dr Anatoli Kamali, regional director for East Africa at IAVI, their article highlights that with oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) becoming a global standard of HIV prevention, PrEPVacc is the first vaccine trial that is evaluating PrEP alongside HIV vaccine candidates.

The authors explain how PrEPVacc has tapped the significant potential of HIV prevention research that exists on the African continent.

In many ways, this is a full circle moment. Equipped with the necessary laboratory, clinical, and bioinformatic capabilities, the lead African researchers in PrEPVacc, world-class experts in their own right, are now mentoring the next generation of African HIV vaccine leaders.

Researchers starting their career paths need look no further than the lauded institutions that already call Africa home, such as the MRC/UVRI and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Uganda Research Unit; the Mbeya Medical Research Centre in Mbeya, Tanzania; and the HIV Prevention Research Unit in Durban, South Africa.