What is ACH4?

The purpose of the Centre is to deliver virological and immunological research outcomes of significance to improve the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of HIV, HBV, HCV and HTLV-1 in Australia and in a broader regional and international context.

The Australian Centre for HIV and Hepatitis Virology Research (ACH4) was founded as one of Australia’s four national centres for HIV research in 2003, the others being the National Centre for HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research (NCHECR now incorporated into the Kirby Institute, UNSW), the National Centre for HIV and Social Research (NCHSR) and the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society (ARCSHS). As suggested by their names, these national centres represented a continuum in HIV research from virology and immunology, through to clinical, epidemiology and social research.

ACH4’s predecessor ACH2 evolved out of two existing bodies, the National Centre for HIV Virology Research (NCHVR), which was established in 1996 under the directorship of Professor Ian Gust to build expertise in HIV virology research and provide advanced virology facilities to support control of the HIV epidemic in Australia in most of the capital cities, and the Australian Centre for Hepatitis Virology (ACHV), an incorporated body that continues to promote research into viral hepatitis in Australia. In 2003-2004 a strategic plan revised the direction of the HIV centre in response to directions from the Population Health Division (now the Office of Health Protection), Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. Basic biomedical HIV virology and immunology research was funded thereafter by NHMRC project and program grants. ACH2 concentrated on funding applied and strategic research into the virology and immunology of blood-borne viruses (BBVs) and viral sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and their importance in an Australian context. The specific viral infections were HIV, Hepatitis B and C with HTLV-1 added in 2020 because of its importance in central Australia . In 2022 the Australian Government refunded the Centre for a further 4 years  and the abbreviation for the Centre was changed from ACH2 to ACH4 to reflect the four viruses of interest.

The continuum of health research into HIV, Hepatitis B and C and HTLV-1 can be viewed as a ‘funnel’ selecting outcomes from a broad range of basic biomedical research, both in Australia and internationally, and developing this into potential health care and biotechnology outcomes, which, together with social research, leads to health care improvement. ACH4 grants encourage basic virology and immunology researchers in the HIV, Hepatitis B and C and HTLV-1 fields to translate their biomedical discoveries and to support clinical research through the development of advanced laboratory tests and the quality control of tests underlying clinical trials. ACH4 funding targets a unique niche in translational research in Australia.