Simian Vaccine Evaluation Units (SVEU)

The SVEU contracts serve as a resource to evaluate promising SIV and HIV vaccines in nonhuman primates in support of HIV vaccine development.

Proposals from investigators for vaccine studies (see guidelines for submission of proposals) are evaluated by NIAID, and approved studies are conducted at one of the three SVEU contract sites. SVEUs conduct collaborative studies in which the vaccine investigator works together with the SVEU Principal Investigator and the SVEU Project Officer on the study design and data evaluation.

The SVEU provides the nonhuman primates for studies to evaluate candidate SIV or HIV vaccines.  The SVEU contractor will immunize nonhuman primates with the candidate vaccine, and together with the Primate Immunology Laboratory, can evaluate humoral and cellular immune responses.  The SVEU can also challenge the animals with SIV or SHIV virus, can determine the levels of replicating virus post-challenge, and will evaluate disease outcomes.

The SVEUs conduct several types of studies:

• Preliminary studies on new vaccines
• Efficacy studies with vaccines that have already demonstrated promise 
• Studies with passively administered products
• In vivo titration of virus challenge stocks
• Evaluation of the immunogenicity and safety of candidate HIV vaccines or SIV vaccines (that parallel HIV vaccines in approach) in support of Phase I human clinical trials
• Comparative studies on vaccines and/or adjuvants from multiple sources

Current SVEU Contractors

Advanced BioScience Laboratories
Kensington, MD
Dr. Phillip Markham

Bioqual
Rockville, MD
P.I.: Dr. Mark Lewis

University of Washington
Seattle, WA
Dr. David Anderson

Current Primate Immunology Laboratory Contractors

Cellular Immune Assays
Beth Israel Hospital
Boston, MA
Dr. Norman Letvin

Virus Neutralization Assays
Duke University
Durham, NC
Dr. David Montefiori

Current Virology Laboratory Contractor

Advanced BioSciences Laboratories
Kensington, MD
Dr. Ranajit Pal

For additional Information and to request SVEU study application forms, contact:

Dr. Nancy Miller
Division of AIDS, Preclinical Research and Development Branch
Phone: 310-435-3753
E-mail: nmiller@niaid.nih.gov

Dr. Jon Warren
Division of AIDS, Preclinical Research and Development Branch
Phone: 301-402-0633
E-mail: jwarren@niaid.nih.gov

Dr. Yen Li
Division of AIDS, Preclinical Research and Development Branch
Phone: 301-496-3816
E-mail: yli@niaid.nih.gov

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