Human Hookworm Vaccine Initiative

The suffering caused by hookworm, is not well known in the developed world, but in many countries it is all too prevalent.  An estimated 576 million people in the developing nations of the tropics are infected with hookworm. The largest numbers of cases occur in impoverished rural areas of Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, China, and Latin America. Approximately 3.2 billion people are at risk for hookworm infection in these areas. The Human Hookworm Vaccine Initiative (HHVI) is a product development partnership based at the Sabin Vaccine Institute with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a vaccine against hookworm.  A vaccine could provide a sustainable, effective means for controlling hookworm infection and protecting the world’s poor from this harmful infection.

May 1993		Sabin Vaccine Institute Founded.
Jan 2000		HHVI Founded.
2000		Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded a 5-year, $18 million dollar grant to HHVI.
Apr 2003		The first vaccine candidate antigen is selected as the Na-ASP-2 larval protein.
Mar 2004		cGMP manufacture of  Na-ASP-2 Hookworm Vaccine in the United States.
Dec 2004		Na-ASP-2 Hookworm Vaccine IND Submission to the FDA.
Apr 2005		Phase 1 clinical trial of Na-ASP-2 Hookworm Vaccine in the United States.
May 2005		Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Awards a 5-year, 21.8 million grant to HHVI.
Jan 2006		cGMP manufacture of three new lots of Na-ASP-2 Hookworm Vaccine in the United States.
Apr 2006		Phase 1 trial site selection in Brazil.
Aug 2006		Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Awards a 4-year, 13.8 million grant to HHVI.