Decision affects research led by Duke University and the Scripps Institute; technologies would also be applicable for covid
The government of US President Donald Trump (Republican) ended a $ 258 million program for HIV vaccine research. The decision was announced by NIH (National Institutes of Health) on Friday (30.MAI.2025) and directly affects the teams of Duke University and the Scripps Institute, which led scientific investigations in the country.
The measure is part of a series of cuts in HIV-related initiatives by Trump administration in both US and internationally.
Research teams worked in collaboration with various partners, developing applicable technologies not only for HIV, but also for covid treatments, snake poison antidotes and autoimmune disease therapies.
The decision resulted from a revision by the NIH command, which decided not to continue supporting vaccine development consortia and immunology for HIV/AIDS. According to information from the New York Timesthe institute intends to redirect its efforts to “The use of approaches currently available to eliminate HIV/AIDS”.
In January, Trump interrupted the release of funds from (President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief), a $ 7.5 billion program that provided HIV treatment in Africa and developing countries.
The research work that had been under development since 2019, through 7-year subsidies, was concentrated in the widely neutralizing antibodies. These antibodies have shown in animal studies to provide lasting protection against multiple HIV strains.
