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MEDIA CENTER Building a Better Microbicide: Gift Advances Population Council’s HIV-Prevention Product Development NEW YORK, NY (28 November 2006) — The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the donation of 15 million Sweden Kronor to the Population Council for the development of a microbicide candidate known as PC-815. A microbicide is a product that would substantially reduce transmission of HIV—and possibly other sexually transmitted infections—when used during intercourse. If proven viable, microbicides would offer a powerful new prevention tool in the fight against AIDS. The Population Council is among the leaders in microbicide development, having begun laboratory and social science research on microbicides more than 15 years ago. PC-815 is a dual-action microbicide formulation. It contains Carraguard®, the Population Council’s most promising first-generation microbicide candidate, and MIV-150, an active HIV inhibitor licensed to the Population Council from Sweden-based Medivir AB. Laboratory tests on MIV-150 have confirmed that it is highly active against HIV and, when combined with Carraguard, is a stable formulation that is safe when tested in animals. Population Council researchers are hopeful that the combination of the two products, which have different mechanisms of action, will be more effective in preventing HIV infection than either substance alone. Clinical trials Two small Phase 1 safety studies are planned for PC-815, one with HIV-negative women and one with HIV-positive women. The study with HIV-positive women will also collect data on whether exposure to the microbicide gel reduces the amount of active virus in the vagina. As Population Council biomedical researchers learn more about the effects of Carraguard and PC-815, they are developing additional formulations in the hope of more effectively blocking transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). They are also developing a formulation that will prevent pregnancy as well as STI transmission. The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has contributed to the Population Council’s microbicide program in each of the last three years. “Sweden, with its long-standing focus on prevention measures, considers your work to be excellent and important,” said Carin Jamtin, the former Minister for International Development Cooperation. “We understand the need for stable and sustainable financing when it comes to research, which is long-term and often costly.” About the Population Council ### Media contacts
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