HISTORY
SEARCH Research Foundation (SEARCH), an independent Thailand based NGO, started as a partnership in 2006 with the goal of accomplishing mutual objectives in HIV/ AIDS research in the South-East Asia region between Professor Praphan Phanuphak, then Director of the Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Centre (TRCARC), Dr. Jerome Kim, then Department Chief of Retrovirology at the Armed Forces Research Institute of Medical Sciences in Bangkok, and Dr. Cecilia Shikuma, the Director of the Pacific Center for AIDS Research at the University of Hawaiʻi. The collaboration was soon joined by multiple active collaborators, starting with Dr. Victor Valcour of the University of California at San Francisco. Research with the International Neuro HIV Cure Consortium (INHCC) is embedded in nearly all SEARCH HIV studies to date and SEARCH study samples and data are shared with collaborating investigators at more than 40 institutions globally. Funding for the studies comes from the National Institutes of Health (NIMH, NINDS, and NIAID) and pharmacaceutical sponsors.
SEARCH’s initial mission was to elucidate the interplay between viral and host factors and neurological outcomes during the establishment of HIV infection, including in neuroHIV studies in children. Over time, the mission expanded to examining the mechanisms related to acute HIV that underlie HIV persistence.
By increasing our understanding, we help identify and investigate strategies (so-called HIV cure studies) that can support more effective immunological responses to HIV infection and lead to control or clearance of the virus without the need for lifelong antiretroviral therapy. At the same time, a more detailed understanding of the earliest stages of infection also benefits HIV vaccine research efforts conducted by SEARCH and others
Since 2014, SEARCH has expanded its scope of research to include preventive vaccines (HIV, gonorrhea), emerging infectious diseases, and social science studies, and SEARCH now facilitates a portfolio of diverse research studies.
VISIONOur vision is to be recognized as a competent, world-class clinical research organization.
MISSIONOur mission is to provide clinical research of the highest quality to our collaborator and stakeholders that is conducted responsibly and ethically.
COLLABORATIONS AND ALLIANCESOur collaborators currently comprise 57 investigators from 45 institutions on 4 continents, including government, academic, and industry partners. Most collaborating institutions perform non-human subject research with samples and data from our studies, supporting the study objectives, while a few partners provide full protocol review. Our regulatory team works with and coordinates between 45 IRBs globally and manages complex regulatory submissions.
VISION
Our vision is to be recognized as a world competence clinical research organization.
MISSION
Our mission is to provide excellent clinical research conduction to our collaborations and stakeholders so that the research are conducted responsibly, ethically and with the highest quality.
Our initial expertise was developed to elucidate the interplay between viral and host factors during the establishment of HIV infection and the mechanisms that underlie its persistence. By increasing our understanding of these factors, we help identify and investigate strategies (so-called HIV cure studies) that can support effective immunological responses to HIV infection and lead to control or clearance of the virus without the need for lifelong antiretroviral therapy. At the same time, a more detailed understanding of the earliest stages of infection also benefits HIV vaccine research efforts conducted by SEARCH and others. Not only the HIV expertise, SEARCH also expands its scope to research with preventive vaccines (HIV, gonorrhea), global emerging infectious diseases and social science studies.
