Multi-Country Phase III Clinical Trials To Test Microbicides To Prevent HIV Infection

The CONRAD program of the Eastern Virginia Medical School today announced that it has received a $12M grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, with $12 million in matching funds committed by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), for a total of $24M. This grant plus the USAID award will allow two multi-country Phase III clinical trials of a product to prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS. The main goal of the project is to determine if a vaginal microbicide candidate is an effective and safe method for preventing HIV transmission. CONRAD plans to meet this goal by completing two Phase III HIV prevention trials with a gel consisting of 6% cellulose sulfate (CS), also known as Ushercell®, developed by CONRAD in collaboration with Polydex Pharmaceuticals Limited, a publicly quoted (POLXF, Nasdaq) Canadian company. One trial, implemented by CONRAD, will be conducted in India and four African countries. This trials will be funded equally by the Gates Foundation and USAID. The other trial, initiated in late 2004 in Nigeria in collaboration with Family Health International (FHI), is entirely supported by USAID.