Absci (NASDAQ:ABSI) and leading researchers at the California Institute of Technology received a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for a joint effort to discover affordable HIV therapeutic vaccinations, with the goal of making a significant step forward in the fight against the global HIV/AIDS epidemic.
The collaboration between Caltech and Absci, led by Dr. Pamela Bjorkman, brings together cutting-edge research capabilities and advanced technological expertise in structural biology and immunology, protein design, synthetic biology, and generative AI.
Antiretroviral therapies help many people live longer, healthier lives, but they do not completely eliminate the virus and must be taken for life. Additionally, the cost and inaccessibility of these drugs disproportionately affect millions of people from low-income and marginalized communities.
This new partnership aims to focus on affordability, scalability, and accessibility of HIV therapeutic vaccinations.
“At Absci, we are driven to transform lives through the power of generative AI and synthetic biology,” Sean McClain, founder and CEO of Absci, said in a statement.
By joining forces with Dr. Bjorkman and Dr. Stephen Mayo, and with support from the Gates Foundation, “we believe we can make significant strides towards developing affordable HIV therapeutic vaccinations and positively impacting global health,” he added.
