Anti HIV gel shown not to work

An anti HIV ‘infection blocking’ gel modelled on KY jelly and designed to prevent infection with the Aids virus has proved ineffective in trials in Africa.The large-scale British backed trial involved 9,385 women in four African countries.  But it found no evidence that the vaginal microbicide, Pro 2000 a gel that is applied internally, does not stop HIV from entering the bloodstream.Half the participants were given PRO 2000 while the other half got an inactive gel. There were 130 infections among those who used the real thing and 123 among those who had the placebo.To date, no gel microbicide has been shown to work against HIV infection and this trial showed conclusively that PRO 2000 gel was of no added benefit, ending scientific speculation about its clinical importance, Britain's Medical Research Council said today.

Dr Sheena McCormack of the Medical Research Council, who led the trial said they were deeply disappointed, but that the search must go on. "This result is disheartening,” she said “particularly in light of the results of a smaller trial sponsored by the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) which suggested that PRO 2000 could reduce the risk of HIV infection by 30 per cent. Nevertheless we know this is an important result and it shows clearly the need to undertake trials which are large enough to provide definitive evidence for whether or not a product works."A microbicide, in the form of a vaginal cream or gel that kills the virus, would give women in Africa and Asia the power to defend themselves against HIV given the refusal of many men to wear condoms. One thing the trials in Africa did show was that both men and women found its use acceptable.

Expectations were raised in March when a smaller US-led trial of PRO 2000, involving 3,099 women, found a 30% reduction in infections, but the actual numbers of people who became HIV positive were not large enough to give conclusive results.The trial was carried out by the Microbicides Development Programme (MDP), a not-for-profit partnership of 16 African and European research institutions, said: "The trial itself was very well designed and undertaken, so we know that the results are definitive."It is unfortunate that this microbicide is ineffective at preventing HIV infection but it's still vital for us as scientists to continue to look for new ways of preventing HIV," he said in a statement.

By Hayley Jarvis for SOS Children