Members of the scientific council are discussing this year's research strategic plan of the centre amongst other things.

The scientific council of the "Chantal Biya" International Reference Centre for Research on HIV and AIDS Prevention and Management known by its French acronym as CIRCB began meeting yesterday in Yaounde under the chairmanship of its President, Pr. Luc Montagnier, to examine and evaluate the work of researchers at the centre. During the two-day session which ends today evening, the scientists will discuss about the reorganisation of CIRCB, make an overview of the centre's scientific report activities in 2009, present the 2010 research strategic plan, discuss about the reorganisation of the centre and identify priority for research. By the end of today's meetings, members of the scientific council will also look into the proposal of new scientific council members.

The Scientific Director at CIRCB, Professor Vittorio Colizzi, said during the first four years, the centre focused on the organisational chart to set up the technical platform. Now that the training of personnel is done, with the setting up of necessary instruments and different laboratories such as that of Microbial Immunology, Molecular Microbiology, Bioinformatics and that of clinical Pathology, Prof. Colizzi told the press that the "Chantal Biya" Research Centre now has an international status in terms of research. So far, the centre have been able to follow-up a national programme set up by the Ministry of Public Health which allows the detection of the positivity of the molecular biological level of all infant born of HIV infected mothers. According to Pr. Colizzi, the technology of the laboratories at the CIRCB is not just to carryout basic research but also clinical research which allows them identify various infections and when to start treatments.

This year, Pr Colizzi said there is a major modification in the research strategic plan at CIRCB. In the past four years, the centre focused on HIV. But now it has been realised that HIV in Africa is not just HIV but HIV and tuberculosis (TB) or malaria and several other co-infections. These co-infections can increase the propulsion of HIV for as the Scientific Director underscored "an HIV patient can stay for many years without developing the disease but when there is co-infection like TB, the HIV disease can be detected within few months". As such, Pr Colizzi and his team will henceforth analyse, follow-up as well as stop HIV co-infections.

The Chief Scientific Officer of New England Biolabs, Inc, and 1993 Nobel Laureate for Medicine, who is now a member of the Scientific Council at CIRCB, Professor Richard John Roberts, said although he is not an HIV researcher, he knows a lot about bioinformatics and computers and he has ways and the necessary contacts to help keep the centre in touch with other people outside the country who can be of great help to the centre.