AntiHIV gel to be tested on women
An antiHIV gel developed by Australian biotech company Starpharma,of Melbourne, which proved completely effective when tested on monkeys, is due to be trialled on a group of Australian women.
An antiHIV gel developed by Australian biotech company Starpharma,of Melbourne, which proved completely effective when tested on monkeys, is due to be trialled on a group of Australian women.
This is the first human experiment with the gel, which is specifically designed to attack the spread of HIV in women, who now account for half of those who are HIV positive.
When applied inside the vagina the gel is thought to prevent the virus from attaching itself to healthy cells; tests on monkeys indicated it incapacitates HIV once it enters the immune cells.
Known as VivaGel, the drug has been tested on female monkeys in the US over the past two years. A single intravaginal application of the gel was found to prevent the animals from being infected when exposed to the monkey version of HIV.