The Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI), in collaboration with the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) and Targeted Genetics, Launches HIV/AIDS Vaccine Trial in Entebbe, Uganda.

SEATTLE & ENTEBBE, Uganda -- Targeted Genetics Corporation (Nasdaq:TGEN), The Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI), and the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), today announced the start of a Phase II clinical trial in Uganda to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of tgAAC09, a preventive HIV/AIDS vaccine. This is the second IAVI-sponsored HIV vaccine trial to be conducted in Uganda.

The trial will be conducted at the Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI) in Entebbe, Uganda with Dr. Pontiano Kaleebu acting as the Principal Investigator. Parallel trials are currently underway at three sites in South Africa. There are also plans to evaluate the vaccine candidate at a fifth site, in Zambia, pending regulatory approval.

"We are pleased that Uganda continues to play a leading role in the testing of promising HIV vaccine candidates," said Dr. Pontiano Kaleebu. "A vaccine is the world's best hope to end the spread of a disease that infects 14,000 men, women and children worldwide every day."

"Developing an AIDS vaccine for the regions of the world in greatest need will take innovative North-South partnerships and a sustained scientific effort," said Seth Berkley, M.D., President and CEO of IAVI. "The development of this vaccine candidate demonstrates the role IAVI plays in bringing together the private sector and public sectors. Uganda provides an excellent scientific environment for HIV vaccine research and clinical trials, a supportive government, and an energized and aware public."

The vaccine candidate was developed by Targeted Genetics Corporation, based in Seattle, Washington, USA. The vaccine is based on HIV subtype C, the subtype of the virus most prevalent in southern and eastern Africa.

The tgAAC09 vaccine candidate is designed as a preventive vaccine, intended to protect people uninfected with HIV from contracting the disease. It is designed to elicit two different types of immune responses, an antibody response and a cell-mediated response.

"Evaluating tgAAC09 in this region advances the development of this promising vaccine candidate and we are pleased to be working in partnership with IAVI and the Uganda government in our fight against HIV/AIDS. This is an example of the kind of international collaboration that is critical to an expedited pursuit of an effective vaccine," said H. Stewart Parker, President and Chief Executive Officer of Targeted Genetics. "Our HIV/AIDS vaccine development program is designed to generate robust data in a rapid and rigorous manner, clearly important in support of the global effort to halt the HIV pandemic."