The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced it has canceled a study on a single human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) vaccine that was already in its final phase of clinical trials.
The vaccine was developed by researchers from the pharmaceutical company Janssen, the multinational company Johnson & Johnson, together with scientists from US government agencies.
The NIH, a medical research agency, said in a statement Wednesday that trials conducted on three continents involving 3,900 volunteers showed the vaccine is “safe but does not provide protection” against HIV infection.
The decision to cancel a trial of the vaccine, known as Mosaic, came after an independent review board determined it was not compliant, according to Spanish news agency EFE.
According to the Medical Research Agency, the vaccine was based on a “mosaic” of immunogens that sought to trigger an immune system response to fight different variants of HIV.
One of the chief immunologists in the United States, Anthony Fauci, found the news about the suspension of the study “disappointing”, but defended that attempts to find a vaccine against the virus that causes AIDS should not be abandoned.
Mitchell Warren, executive director of AVAC, an HIV prevention organization, also expressed his displeasure in a statement.
“The brutal truth is that the science behind developing an HIV vaccine is extremely complex, but now is not the time to abandon ongoing research,” he said.
UN data shows that more than 38 million people worldwide are currently living with the virus and that 1.5 million new infections were reported in 2021 alone.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
I am Michael Melvin, an experienced news writer with a passion for uncovering stories and bringing them to the public. I have been working in the news industry for over five years now, and my work has been published on multiple websites. As an author at 24 News Reporters, I cover world section of current events stories that are both informative and captivating to read.