NEAT (European Aids Treatment Network)

http://ec.europa.eu/research/health/infectious-diseases/poverty-diseases/projects/131_en.htm

Partners

Lead partner - Instituto Superiore di Sanità [Italian National Institute of Health], Italy
Agence National de Recherche sur le SIDA et les Hepatites Virales (ANRS) FRANCE
Competence Network HN/AIDS Ruihz Universitat Bochum GERMANY
Medical Research Council – MRC UNITED KINGDOM
Academisch Medisch Centrum NETHERLANDS
National University of Ireland, University College Dublin - School of Medicine and Medical Sciences IRELAND
University of Lisbon, Faculdade de Medicina de Lisboa PORTUGAL
Hospital Clinic i Provincial de Barcelona SPAIN
Fundacio Lucha contra la SIDA SPAIN
Hospital Carlos III - Service of Infectious Diseases SPAIN
Hospital La Paz HIV-UNIT SPAIN
Saint Pierre University Hospital HSP Department of Infectious Diseases BELGIUM
Wojewodzki Szpital Zakazny WSZ AIDS - Diagnosis and Therapy Center POLAND
University Hospital Plzen CZ FZ Department of Infectious Diseases - AIDS Center CZECH REPUBLIC
5th Dept. of Medicine - Saint Laszlo Hospital HUNGARY
Karolinska Institut, Stockholm SWEDEN
Hvidovre Hospital HH - Copenhagen HIV Programme DENMARK
Assistance Publique – Hopitaux de Paris FRANCE
Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Nantes Dep.of Infectious Diseases - HIV Clinical Research Unit FRANCE
Universitè PARIS 7 - Denis Diderot FRANCE
University of Bonn - Department of Medicine GERMANY
Abteilung Klinische Immunologie Medizinische Hochschule Hannover GERMANY
Hospital of the Johann Wolfang Goethe University GERMANY
National Institute for Infectious Diseases “L.Spallanzani” (IRCCS) ITALY
Universita degli Studi di Brescia - Institute of Infectious and Tropical Diseases ITALY
Fondazione Centro San Raffaele del Monte Tabor ITALY
Università degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata Dept.of Public Health ITALY
Università degli studi di Milano -Department of Clinical Sciences “L.Sacco” ITALY
St.Stephens AIDS Trust - Dep. of HIV UNITED KINGDOM
Royal Free and University College Medical School of UCL - Dep. of Primary Care and Population Sciences UNITED KINGDOM
University Medical Center Utrecht - Department of Virology NETHERLANDS
International Antiviral Therapy Evaluation Center NETHERLANDS
Sozialmedizinischess Zentrum Baumgartner H-HE-Otto Wagner Spital Mit Pflegezentrum AUSTRIA
Center Hospitalier Universitaire (CHUV) - SWISS HIV Cohort Study SWITZERLAND
PENTA for the treatment and care of children with HIV and related diseases – Onlus ITALY
Cineca, Consorzio InterUniversitario ITALY

Summary

Academic and publicly driven transnational and clinical research in Europe is still fragmented and insufficiently funded, despite some relevant examples of at least partial integration and coordination (e.g. cancer and cardiovascular research). In fact, the majority of preclinical and phase I-III clinical research is carried out by the pharmaceutical industry. In the HIV infection and AIDS area, public investments and coordination varies considerably from country to country, with only a few countries having specific National Programmes providing funding, and/or Central Coordinating Institutions providing technical support to clinical research within the country.

Combination antiretroviral therapy has resulted in a dramatic decrease in mortality and HIV-associated morbidity in industrialised countries. Nevertheless, many serious issues and challenges – namely long term toxicity and HIV drug resistance - are problematic and important in the management of HIV infected individuals, even when treated according to the state-of-the-art. The need for further advances in clinical governance and management of HIV infection remains a high priority, both from a public health and from a medical research perspective.

Why

NEAT’s mission is to strengthen European HIV clinical research capacity by building a clinical and laboratory network in HIV therapeutics. NEAT catalyses a critical mass of resources and expertise, with the direct involvement of 41 core partners from 16 countries and over 350 affiliated centres of established international reputation. NEAT is committed to designing the roadmap for a durable reshaping of the way clinical research is carried out in Europe so as to achieve a progressive and lasting integration. In doing so, NEAT will pave the way toward the creation of the European Research Area.

The Network will also spread expertise and resources provide training and mobility of scientists at all levels and will foster lasting collaborations across Europe.

EATG is involved in WP 5 – Community and Ethics
The primary objectives of this work-package are to further enhance the capacity of the European AIDS/HIV community to provide expertise on clinical trials and actively engage in all phases of HIV/clinical trials (ie trial design, trial initiation, and conduct of research), to ensure community involvement in the NEAT trials and to liaise with the HIV/AIDS community on the developments on an ongoing basis.
Furthermore, WP 5 will address ethical issues related to the conduct of the NEAT clinical trials, from a community perspective and in close cooperation with the Steering Committee (SC).
In order to accomplish these objectives, WP 5 focus on
1. Providing a vehicle for NEAT partners to interact with the European community of people living HIV & AIDS (PLWHA) and local CABs.
2. Improving the organizational structures for community-building and decision-making of PLWHA in Europe.
3. Increasing the information flow on European research on HIV/AIDS between PLWHA and researchers (and sponsors).
4. Contributing to the input and impact of PLWHA on European norms, standards, and guidance for research on HIV/AIDS.
5. Increasing the role and impact of PLWHA in Europe on the international discussion and actions in HIV/AIDS.
6. Providing patient-oriented information on clinical (HIV/AIDS) research, making European clinical research more understandable and acceptable to the community and to patients, and thereby facilitate patient participation in European clinical trials.

What

• To strengthen the research capacity throughout Europe by building a network for clinical therapeutic trials in HIV in order to optimise the management of HIV;
• To define optimal strategies for management of HIV infection and to guide the implementation of optimal interventions;
• To improve coherence, complementarities and integration and to develop a common research programme in HIV research;
• To spread excellence through training, mobility and informative programmes (including public events, conferences, website);
• To bring together the existing but dispersed critical mass of researchers (more than 200 scientists) and expertise in Europe from leading Institutions and Organisations (5 National Agencies, 2 established consortia, 15 leading clinical Institutions and 1 European Patient Association);
• To integrate leading HIV/AIDS research Institutions and Clinical Centres through a coherent, multidisciplinary and durable research programme;
• To tackle fragmentation and strengthen excellence by creating a Clinical Trials Platform to improve the efficacy and coherence of ongoing HIV/AIDS clinical research in Europe;
• To design the roadmap for a durable restructuring and reshaping of the way research is carried out in Europe to achieve a desired level of integration, in the medium/long term;
• To significantly increase the quality and ambitions of existing research in order to affirm Europe’s leadership in the field;
• To promote quality and excellence through the establishment of a PhD and post doctoral programme to train young scientists.

Contact

NEAT taskforce

Nikos Dedes (leader)
Alain Volny Anne (BOD Liaison)
Brian West
Filippo Von Schloesser
David Haerry
Ramon Espacio
Siegfried Schwarze
Simon Collins
Svilen Conov
Milena Stevanovic

NEAT coordinator – Stefano Vella