CIHR Team Grant : Biomedical Research for HIV/AIDS and STBBI

Well-being, Health and Biomedical Discovery

Deadlines

Academic Unit: inquire with unit

Memorial Deadline: Thursday 12th, September 2024

External Deadline: Tuesday 17th, September 2024

Description

In 2016, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a series of global health sector strategies for HIV/AIDS, viral hepatitis and sexually transmitted infections^1,2,3. Having endorsed the global targets set out in the WHO strategies, the Government of Canada launched a Pan-Canadian STBBI Framework for Action in 2018 to reduce the health impacts of STBBI in Canada⁴.

Although Canada has made significant progress towards achieving the global targets set for HIV/AIDS, even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic this progress had stalled with the number of first-time diagnoses remaining stable between 2012 and 2018⁵. Over the same time period, rates of new infections for other STBBI including curable infections such as chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and hepatitis C continued to increase⁶. Globally the COVID-19 pandemic had devastating impacts on key populations disproportionately affected by STBBI, as access to STBBI prevention, care and treatment services was limited, and UNAIDS has raised concerns that the world is off-track for meeting the current global targets for HIV/AIDS⁷. Further compounding concerns regarding the rise in STBBI infection rates, are the escalating rates of antimicrobial resistance and multidrug resistance, particularly for gonorrhea⁸.

To address the complex and growing concerns regarding STBBI, innovative technologies are needed for prevention and therapeutic intervention. Specifically, as highlighted in the CIHR HIV/AIDS and STBBI Research Initiative Strategic Plan: 2022-2027, there is a need for research on novel antimicrobials to overcome the threats posed by increasing antimicrobial resistance; innovative technologies that leverage artificial intelligence, applications, and digital platforms to strengthen monitoring and diagnosis; multipurpose prevention and testing technologies that address the syndemic nature of STBBI, next generation approaches to vaccines, vaccine adjuvants and prevention technologies/strategies as alternatives to vaccines; and importantly novel approaches to advancing antiviral therapeutics such as long-acting antivirals and an effective cure to eradicate HIV reservoirs.

See ResearchNet for more information.

Funding Sources

Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR)