ARA Core Research Initiatives
AIDS Research Alliance’s independent research and its scientific work for the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies both focus on several core areas, including:
- Strategies for eliminating HIV viral reservoirs, considered the primary stumbling block to a cure;
- Studying the safety and effectiveness of new anti-HIV drugs; and
- Searching for new medical strategies, like microbicides, (Microbicides FAQ),
and vaccines, which will prevent the further spread of HIV.
A History of Accomplishments
Over the years, AIDS Research Alliance has conducted over 80 clinical and preclinical studies, ranging from therapies that take a holistic approach to HIV management to the first ever in-human HIV vaccine trial.
Some notable accomplishments:
- Almost half of all existing anti-HIV treatments arrived to market—and arrived there faster—because of a revolutionary new research protocol devised by AIDS Research Alliance.
- AIDS Research Alliance helped prove the effectiveness of a rapid oral HIV test (testing saliva), which returns a reliable result within 20 minutes, rather than the 2-14 days needed for the traditional blood test.
- AIDS Research Alliance conducted the first study in the U.S. on clarythromicin, now the primary treatment for treating mycobacterium avium complex, a serious bacterial infection related to tuberculosis.
- AIDS Research Alliance helped to prove the effectiveness of Abacavir, a better-tolerated NRTI. Our efforts were also pivotal in trials studying nelfinavir (Viracept™), regarded as an effective anchor drug in many therapy combinations; tenofovir (Viread™), the first drug indicated for patients whose immune systems wouldn’t respond to any other HIV drugs; and sustained release d4t (2004) that simplifies treatment to once-a-day dosing.
Click Here For A List Of Current ARA Studies
The Beginnings of ARA
AIDS Research Alliance was founded by a group of Southern California physicians and community members who were committed to combining scientific rigor with activist urgency. Together, they transformed a grassroots alliance of doctors into one of the most respected community-based research facilities in the nation.
A Call to Arms
By 1989, AIDS had ravaged an entire generation of young men and women throughout the world, most of them in the prime of their lives. At that time:
• 90,000 people had died
• 150,000 people had been diagnosed with AIDS
In the summer of 1989, Dr. Paul Rothman, a leading Los Angeles physician, and Matthew Rushton, a noted Hollywood producer (both infected with HIV), responded by collaborating to create a revolutionary way to conduct medical research in the U.S.
Revolutionary Community-Based Research Methods
Paul and Matthew created an alliance, where AIDS doctors could pool data and identify the most promising experimental treatments. This idea evolved into a formal clinical research program, based on the protocols developed in the private practices of Alliance physicians (originally called Search Alliance). Sadly, both Dr. Rothman and Mr. Rushton later died of AIDS.
Research = Results
Eventually, ARA’s innovative community-based research exhibited several major benefits over traditional research models. In particular, AIDS Research Alliance’s model:
- Demonstrated the impact of new compounds
- Provided the first answers to whether some compounds in widespread use were actually beneficial in treating HIV
- Required a smaller number of research volunteers
- Meaningful results were gleaned more quickly
ARA Evolves
In 1995, AIDS Research Alliance centralized all clinical research activities in one licensed clinic in West Hollywood. This allowed ARA to:
- Identify and manage scientific, clinical and organizational strategies
- Recruit a staff of dedicated research professionals
- Maintain affiliations with physicians, scientists and academics
Today, ARA collaborates with many large pharmaceutical companies, small biotech firms as well as academic and government scientists, to advance the search for a cure and for prevention strategies. As a not-for-profit organization, all “profits” from sponsored clinical trials are re-invested in ARA’s independent research initiatives.
In January 2009, AIDS Research moved into a larger, state-of-the-art medical facility in downtown Los Angeles. Our new home features expanded laboratory resources, allowing AIDS Research Alliance to conduct even more sophisticated HIV research.
