WHO-UNAIDS HIV vaccine advisory committee (VAC)
1-3 May 2012, Chateau des Penthes, Geneva, Switzerland
The Vaccine Advisory Committee (VAC) is a regular annual meeting which provides advice to WHO and UNAIDS, through the WHO-UNAIDS HIV Vaccine Initiative (HVI), on activities related to the development and evaluation of HIV vaccines. As part of its terms of reference, the VAC provides recommendations on strategies and activities, focusing on developing countries.
Prior to the VAC meeting, a scientific briefing on "Biomedical HIV/AIDS Prevention Landscape & Consequences for HIV Vaccine Development" was held with the aim of providing information on the biomedical HIV prevention landscape in Africa and assessment (a) if it will still be possible and if yes, under which conditions, will it still be possible to perform HIV prevention trials in Africa and (b) modelling scenarios of HIV/AIDS prevention packages including HIV vaccines & non-vaccine biomedical prevention interventions.
Objectives of the VAC meeting included:
- to review a draft publication on adaptive clinical HIV trial design;
- to report on the AAVP Transition to Africa;
- to provide a proposal for WHO activities on HIV subtype monitoring & implications for vaccine composition;
- to hold discussions of a proposal for update of WHO/UNIADS guidance on sample collection and biobanking methodologies; and
- provide a report derived from the scientific briefing on the biomedical HIV/AIDS prevention landscape and development of a WHO/UNAIDS action plan.