PASADENA -- Caltech president David Baltimore is among a group scientists calling for a coordinated global effort to develop an HIV vaccine.

The disease was first identified 20 years ago, and 40 million people worldwide have HIV/AIDS. With 45 million new infections predicted by 2010, and nearly 70 million deaths expected by 2020, tens of millions of lives are dependent on the development of a safe and effective HIV vaccine, the scientists said in a paper published Thursday in the journal Science.

The group proposes building a coordinated network of six to 10vaccine development centers, each devoted to a different approach. A separate group of consortia would address the fundamental questions scientists must answer to create a vaccine, such as the structure of HIV proteins that let the virus enter a human cell.

"We're trying to do something that has never been done before,' Baltimore said.

Though researchers have made progress in understanding the attacks and counterattacks in the battle between HIV and the human immune system, we are still far from having an effective vaccine, Baltimore said.

The scientists were brought together by Richard Klausner of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In March, the foundation donated $60 million to the International Partnership for Microbicides, a nonprofit organization that promotes development of low-cost HIV/AIDS preventions.

The model for the global vaccine enterprise is the Human Genome Project, the collaboration between commercial and public interests that sequenced the human genome.

As the scientific risk of failure and the cost of vaccine development are high, reliance on industry to carry the major load for discovery and development for HIV vaccines is unrealistic, the scientists said.

Even with more money, more researchers and better technology, Baltimore believes it will be at least five to 10 years before an effective vaccine is available, if one can be developed at all. Given the epidemic's severity, it's worth the effort, he said.

"Throwing in the towel is not an option. This is too important.'

-- Becky Oskin can be reached at (626) 578-6300, Ext. 4451, or by e-mail at becky.oskin@sgvn.com.