A partnership initiative of NACO, ICMR and IAVI have embarked on a process of introducing multiple HIV/AIDS vaccine candidates in India, in accordance to the recommendations made by the president of India last year.

Talking to the media, country director, IAVI, Anjali Nayar, said, "The team of scientific and public health experts examined the merits of the potential candidates suitable for India. The recommended vaccine candidates are recombinant Adeno-Associated Virus (AAV) vaccine, Adeno5 and SFV vaccine."

She further added that all vaccines target the sub type C HIV virus, which is most prevalent in India. As these vaccine become available, government will look at the feasibility of holding clinical trials in India.

As per the scientific data, single vaccine may not be able to provide sufficient protection. Therefore, a prime boost strategy is being considered and this necessitated us to look at the multiple candidates, she said.

"We are hopeful that in keeping with the multiple candidate approach, India may soon be a part of global effort," she added.

Dr Ramesh Paranjape, officer-in-charge NARI, Pune further informed that as per the MVA candidate, the new Schedule Y gives more clarity on the submission procedure for the regulatory clearances. "We are therefore proceeding with the toxicology studies in second animal species, even though there is sufficient data available from the first animal and earlier MVA studies."