Research

The Institute of Human Virology is the first research institute in the United States to link basic research, population studies and clinical research in an effort to discover new ways to diagnose and treat viral diseases. Its primary goals are to develop new treatments, cures, and, ultimately, prevention of chronic viral diseases.

Already, IHV scientists and researchers have forged new paths in the fight against HIV and AIDS, now the worst epidemic and deadliest disease in medical history. Scientists at the Institute also aggressively pursue the mechanisms by which viruses attack human cells and spread and focus their research efforts on prevention and biological treatments that are potentially less toxic, less costly and more easily accessible to the world at large.

In addition, the IHV brings a full range of patient problems to the laboratory investigator, ideas from clinical providers to the lab scientists and, in turn, quick application of basic research discoveries to the patient. It's a new paradigm that allows us to speed the pace of discovery - and the benefit to real-life patients.

Research initiatives at the Institute of Human Virology fall under three main divisions:

• Basic Science
• Vaccine Development
• Clinical Research/Trials

Basic Science

Researchers in this division seek a deeper understanding of the properties of HIV and work to identify other new viruses. This discovery process enables scientists to develop new treatments for AIDS and other diseases and often furthers our knowledge of the role of viruses in cancers and other diseases.

Vaccine Development

At the Institute, one quest is to find an effective and affordable vaccine against HIV. This ambitious goal represents science's greatest hope in conquering the HIV/AIDS epidemic, especially in developing countries where health care is sporadic and money and medical personnel are scarce. Scientists in this division are working on novel approaches that already have shown positive results in the laboratory setting.

Clinical Research/Trials

In order to benefit patients, research initiatives must advance from laboratory to clinic. At the IHV, basic researchers work alongside clinicians to speed the pace of progress. The benefit for patients is that they have access to cutting-edge treatments not available elsewhere.

IHV's research efforts are facilitated by two core areas of support:

Animal Models

Animal models research is an integral part of the scientific research process for therapies and vaccines. This division is a unique feature of the Institute, enabling scientists to work with relatively inexpensive models to study AIDS and new drugs or therapies without risk to humans. Developing animal subjects for use in viral research is a science unto itself and is essential in taking a discovery from the laboratory to the clinic.

µQUANT Core Facility

The Institute also houses its own µQUANT core facility to provide quality immunological analyses of biological analytes to researchers within the IHV and to outside collaborators locally and nationally.

Click here to read more about µQUANT Core Facility

Research Funding at IHV

Much of the Institute's scientific work is funded through research grants and other sponsored programs.

Over the last year, almost $22 million in public and private funding and an additional $29.8 million in multi-year commitments have fueled meaningful scientific contributions at the IHV.

With funding from the World AIDS Foundation, United States Department of Defense and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, our epidemiologists are conducting high-impact investigations among Nigerian subpopulations. The epidemiologic data, when combined with the Institute's characterization of HIV types and subtypes in the same populations, will provide valuable information about transmission patterns. Together the APIN and Geo-Centers data will provide a larger picture of the problems facing Nigeria and may suggest potential intervention points beyond the public health education already conducted in Nigeria by the IHV. This multi-faceted $1.4 million approach promises to further contribute to the international AIDS prevention initiatives coordinated through the Harvard University School of Public Health and the Department of Defense.

IHV vaccinologists and immunologists are pursuing a fast-paced race to develop and produce innovative vaccine candidates. This effort is fueled by $3.8 million in support from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative, and the Waterford Foundation. Additionally, an ambitious NIH-funded project is now underway determining the effectiveness of a promising microbicide in preventing sexual transmission of HIV.

The Vaccine Trials Network of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases sponsors the Institute's network of research sites in Trinidad, Tobago, Virginia and Baltimore, testing the effectiveness of trial vaccines. This $5 million effort ties IHV's vaccine testing strategies to a federally administered network of international sites.

Education and training of health care professionals and researchers in these network countries is critical to the success of the five-year multinational initiative training and educational outreach effort in Brazil, Nigeria, and the Caribbean. An estimated $4.7 million in funding provides training to dozens of scientists and paraprofessionals each year through the AITRP program.

Advances in clinical care and treatment of the AIDS virus has been made possible through IHV's basic scientific discoveries. Grants from the National Institutes of Health have supported $15.9 million in long-term research regarding specific aspects of the HIV's mechanism of action, and several potential roadblocks to disease transmission including innate immunity, T-cell action, protective responses, chemokines, and the synthesis of a newly discovered anti-HIV protein.

An additional $1.5 million in funding this year from the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, and the Environmental Protection Agency have enabled IHV scientists to advance knowledge regarding a number of other threatening viruses, including Hepatitis C, Pfiesteria, and arenaviruses.

The Institute's clinical sites throughout Baltimore contribute to transportation, subspeciality care, and psychosocial support of persons with AIDS with $3.8 million in annual grant support from the Department of Health and Human Services through the well-known Federal Ryan White Act. Institute physicians and psychologists collaborate with the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, the Baltimore City and Prince George's Department of Health, and Associated Black Charities in the provision of these services. The Campaign for Human Forgiveness also provides multi-year funding for the psychosocial support effort.

Clinical trials are the gold standard determining the efficacy and safety of any pharmaceutical treatment. IHV's clinical research scientists are conducting more than 22 such trials with the $2.5 million in sponsorship from 14 corporations.