The AIDS Research Consortium of Atlanta is one of the leading HIV/AIDS research facilities in the nation and is at the forefront of conducting clinical drug trials in the treatment and prevention of the disease.
Dr. Melanie Thompson, ARCA’s founder and principal investigator, says the nonprofit is currently undertaking new studies, including research on drugs not licensed yet for HIV, a drug for lowering cholesterol for those with HIV, a Hepatitis C study and a new research program set to be rolled out soon for African-American men who have sex with men. Another study deals with a single pill that combines three drugs for those who have never taken HIV medicines.
ARCA was also selected last year as the only site for the first therapeutic trial ever conducted using an HIV vaccine candidate from GeoVax. GeoVax vaccines are being studied for HIV prevention, but ARCA is the only facility using the same products for treatment of HIV positive people.