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PROGRAM Microbicides Basic Science Research Population Council scientists have been exploring how HIV is transmitted sexually since the late 1980s. They discovered that HIV-infected cells found in semen and cervical-vaginal secretions could infect the epithelial cells that line the reproductive tract. After determining how epithelial cells become infected in vitro (in test tubes), researchers tested hundreds of compounds to assess which were effective in preventing infection. Compounds called sulfated polysaccharides stood out as especially promising. To test the efficacy of potential microbicide formulations, researchers developed a small-animal system to mimic the physiological events of human sexual transmission of HIV. One sulfated polysaccharide, carrageenan, proved far more effective at protecting mice from infection than any other substance tested. The Council's candidate microbicide, Carraguard®, was developed from carrageenan, and it is the source of formulations that Council scientists continue to develop and test. Projects See Also
Contact: microbicide@popcouncil.org
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