Lok Sabha question on HIV/AIDS VACCINES

[Guest guest]

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA: MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

LOK SABHA: UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 3385. TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.08.2002

DEVELOPMENT OF HIV/AIDS VACCINES

3385. SHRI KIRIT SOMAIYA

Will the Minister of SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state:-

(a) whether the pilot project to develop HIV/AIDS Vaccines has been

completed;

( if so, the details thereof;

© the institutions and departments in India involved in the

research on HIV/AIDS;

(d) if so, the details thereof;

(e) whether NARI has achieved some success in this regard; and

(f) the details about the efforts, action plan, finance for the

research on HIV/AIDS medicines/vaccines?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE FOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (SHRI BACHI SINGH RAWAT)

(a) to (d) : Under a National Jai Vigyan Science and Technology

Mission, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) launched a project

towards development of candidate DNA/ recombinant vaccines for HIV-I

Subtype `C`, the most prevalent type in the country. The gene (DNA)

sequences of the candidate vaccine have yielded encouraging results

in small experimental animals. These are being evaluated in the non-

human primates. The All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New

Delhi; three Institutes of the Indian Council of Medical Research,

i.e. National AIDS Research Institute, National Institute of

Virology, Pune; National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases

(NICED), Kolkata and Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific

Research, Bangalore are implementing these projects.

Also,

International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology,

National Institute of Immunology and National Institute of

Communicable Diseases, New Delhi; Central Jalma Institute for

Leprosy, Agra; Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and

Research, Chandigarh; National Centre for Cell Science, National AIDS

Research Institute (NARI) and National Institute of Virology, Pune;

Christian Medical College, Vellore; Tuberculosis Research Centre,

Chennai; National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad; Institute of

Immunohematology and Institute for Research in Reproduction, Mumbai

are associated to work on different aspect of HIV infection.

Ministries of Science & Technology and Health & Family Welfare are

supporting research in HIV/AIDS.

(e) : NARI, Pune has identified early sero-converters and amplified

genes from them. Using vaccinia vectors, the animal experimentation

has been planned. A Viral Repository supported by DBT with more than

90 fully characterised HIV isolates is functional and catering to the

needs of the scientists.

NARI is also collaborating with NICED, Kolkata and International AIDS

Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) towards identification of suitable vaccine

strains with the intramural funding from Indian Council of Medical

Research; this will be also funded by IAVI. The work is under

progress to insert six HIV genes in a vector.

(f) : The research on HIV/AIDS would continue to get support from the

government. The promising candidate vaccines will be further

evaluated in human volunteers after mandatory clearance from the

Drugs Controller General of India. Under the INDO-US Vaccine Action

Programme (VAP), research and development for HIV/AIDS vaccines is a

high priority. Research towards identification of anti-HIV

compounds/medicines, has also been initiated at some of the research

centres in the country. Two low cost, highly sensitive and specific

diagnostic kits developed through DBT support have been

commercialized.

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