Representatives from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and drug giant GlaxoSmithKline today announced the creation of a unique public-private sector partnership intent on discovering the cure to HIV/AIDS.
The public university and the pharmaceutical behemoth will share resources to create HIV Cure center and Qura Therapeutics, which will both focus exclusively on finding a cure for the disease that killed 1.5 million people in 2013. HIV Cure center will serve as a hub for research, while Qura will handle the day-to-day administrative and business aspects of the partnership.
As part of the agreement, GlaxoSmithKline will invest $20 million over five years in the partnership, and will provide a dedicated research team to support the existing staff at UNC. The university will provide "world-class laboratory space", as well as access to its patients.
"The excitement of this public-private partnership lies in its vast potential," commented UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor Carol L. Folt in a news release. "Carolina has been at the forefront of HIV/AIDS research for the last 30 years. This first of its kind, joint-ownership model is a novel approach toward finding a cure, and we hope it serves as an invitation to the world's best researchers and scientists. Today, Carolina's best are taking another major step in the global fight against HIV/AIDS."
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