Last updated on: 05 February 2025
Sidaction and Aidsfonds are thrilled to announce the awarded proposals of their first joint scientific research grant call, fully focusing on finding a cure for HIV. Our €2 million initiative brings together researchers from France, the Netherlands, and Africa to accelerate progress towards an HIV cure. Here are the granted research proposals:
Research into unique interactions between HIV-1 and HIV-2
While HIV-1 is typically more aggressive, people infected with both HIV-1 and HIV-2 can experience slower disease progression. Scientists are intrigued by this observation and believe that understanding this phenomenon could hold crucial clues for developing an HIV cure. A research team led by Assistant Professor Thibault Mesplède from Erasmus University in Rotterdam, will study 20 individuals with dual HIV-1/HIV-2 infection in Ghana, France and the Netherlands. They will analyse blood samples to measure the “hidden” reservoir of HIV; characterise the immune response and compare findings with individuals infected with only HIV-1 or HIV-2, as well as non-infected individuals.
Research into the role of health care professionals in clinical trials
How doctors make decisions about which patients to include in trials and when to stop their medication can affect the trial’s success, patient well-being, and even how willing patients are to participate. A study team led by Christel Protière from the French Institute of Health and Medical Research Inserm, aims to improve how HIV cure research is conducted by better understanding the role and experiences of the health care professionals involved. Through observations and interviews with doctors, patients and community organisations, the goal is to provide tools that improve communication between doctors and patients and to make sure these trials are ethical, effective, with patients well-supported throughout the process.
Research into a new way to deliver antibodies to fight HIV
Current treatments for delivering antibodies (called broadly neutralising antibodies or bNAbs) require frequent injections, which can be inconvenient and may not work for everyone. Jori Symons from the University Medical Center Utrecht aims to develop a new way to deliver powerful antibodies to fight HIV. The consortium that also includes researchers from the University Medical Centres in Amsterdam and Rotterdam, Institut Pasteur in France and the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, will use tiny particles called lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) to deliver instructions for making bNAbs directly into the body. By exploring how these bNAbs can work with the body’s immune system to clear HIV-infected cells, the team hopes to create an intervention that can effectively reduce the amount of hidden HIV in the body and prevent the virus from rebounding.
Research into antibodies and immune booster as combined treatment approach
Current approaches that are studied in the context of finding a cure for HIV include broadly neutralising antibodies (bNAbs) that can attack the HIV virus, and IL-21, a molecule that boosts the activity of so called natural killer cells which are part of the immune system and help fight infections. Assistant Professor Michaela Muller-Trutwin from Institut Pasteur in France will study whether a combination of bNAb and IL-21 significantly reduce the amount of hidden virus and potentially achieve a long-lasting control of the infection. She works with a research team from Institut de Biologie François Jacob in France, the University Medical Centres in Utrecht, and the Africa Health Research Institute (AHRI) and with in-kind support from Emory Vaccine Center in Atlanta.
Research into ethical and socially acceptable trials
Some HIV cure research involves temporarily stopping medication, called “analytical treatment interruptions” or ATIs. Such research often focuses on the medical aspects and may not fully consider the social and emotional well-being of participants. Assistant Professor Kim Romijnders from the University Medical Centre Utrecht will bring together researchers, people living with HIV, and community groups to understand the needs and concerns related to ATI trials. The study will provide evidence-based recommendations for ethically and socially acceptable ATI trials for people living with HIV in Africa. The team hosts researchers from Westville and Durban in South Africa and the Africa Health Research Institute (AHRI) and benefits from in-kind support by the University of California at San Diego and Harvard Medical School.
Research into the gut as major site of early HIV infection
Current research often focuses on how HIV behaves in the bloodstream. However, the gut is a major site of HIV infection and is one of the places where the virus establishes itself early on. Led by Blandine Monel from the French Institute of Health and Medical Research Inserm in France, her research team aims to understand how HIV infection starts in the gut and to develop new ways to stop it. They will use human tissue samples from the gut to study how HIV infects cells; investigate how the virus enters cells and how the immune system responds; and test new treatment strategies that target the virus as it first enters the body.
Fundamental infrastructure for further collaboration
We congratulate all researchers with their grants. Sidaction and Aidsfonds trust that these studies have the potential to significantly advance our understanding of HIV infection; inspire new and improved therapies; achieve long-term control of the virus; stop HIV at its earliest stages; and ultimately to pave the way for HIV cure strategies.
By funding this research, we also contribute to the establishment of a network that will serve as fundamental infrastructure for further collaboration. Additionally, this new network may contribute to readdressing the current power imbalances in HIV cure research, with insufficient input by African researchers and stakeholders.
About the grants call 2024
This work is part of a €2 million initiative from Sidaction and Aidsfonds that brings together researchers from France, the Netherlands, and Africa to accelerate progress towards an HIV cure. A cure for HIV means that people no longer need to take daily medication, no longer need to receive routine checks at a hospital and that the stigma surrounding HIV disappears for good.
In total we have received 54 pre-proposals from researchers in France, the Netherlands and multiple countries in Africa. From the 25 full proposals that were submitted, a review committee of independent experts selected 6 promising research proposals.
Pre-announcement call for proposals 2025
We are confident that finding a cure for HIV is possible – even though this demands intensive research, time and funds. We are therefore proud to soon announce our new 2025 joint call for proposals with the same topic: finding a cure for HIV. We look forward to the day when everyone has access to a cure!