Mozambique completes first HIV vaccine clinical trial

Last week, "researchers at Mozambique's Polana Cancio Centre for Research and Public Health completed a trial evaluating the safety of an HIV vaccine candidate," the country's "first HIV vaccine trial," and it "is set to embark on a second, a demonstration of the country's increased HIV research capacity," PlusNews reports. The Phase I study "was conducted through the U.K. HIV Vaccine Consortium's Tanzania and Mozambique HIV Vaccine Programme (TaMoVac)," the news service writes, noting the second study of a Phase II HIV vaccine candidate also will be conducted by TaMoVac. "According to Ilesh Jani, director general of Mozambique's National Institute of Health, the studies, while small, mark important first steps towards bolstering clinical trial and research capacity for diseases such as HIV and malaria," PlusNews states, adding, "These diseases, along with malnutrition, continue to drive death rates in the country" (3/15).