GeoVax Recognizes National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day

ATLANTA, GA--(Marketwired - Apr 8, 2016) - On Sunday, April 10, individuals and organizations across the country will observe National Youth HIV & AIDS Awareness Day, a day set aside to recognize the impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on young people. GeoVax Labs, Inc. (OTCQB: GOVX) is commemorating the day by bringing attention to the alarming rate of infections among US youth and the need for an HIV vaccine.

In the United States, there are approximately 1.2 million people living with HIV, and another 50,000 are infected each year. An estimated 26% of all new HIV cases occur in young people aged 13-24 years, with recent statistics showing diagnosis rates increasing 10.5% per year in this age group. Within this group, minorities are also disproportionally affected; nearly 60% of new infections occur in African-Americans and 20% in Hispanics/Latinos.

Despite the availability of effective HIV medications and the best efforts of community education toward prevention, the tide of new HIV infections has remained virtually unchanged in the US for more than 20 years. Much like the polio and smallpox eradication efforts, it will take a vaccine to eradicate HIV. This remains the primary mission for our company. GeoVax has developed the leading HIV vaccine candidate designed to prevent infection from the subtype of HIV prevalent in North America and Western Europe. Our vaccine has undergone more than 20 years of development, encompassing basic discovery research, preclinical animal testing, and safety testing in humans. It is now ready for efficacy trials in individuals at risk of contracting HIV.

HIV/AIDS is a serious threat to anyone of any age, but the National Youth HIV and AIDS Awareness Day reminds us of how important our work is for improving the lives of our nation's youth. GeoVax and its partners remain dedicated to the goal of an AIDS-free generation.

About GeoVax

GeoVax Labs, Inc. is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing human vaccines against infectious diseases using its Modified Vaccinia Virus Ankara -- Virus-Like Particle (MVA-VLP) vaccine platform. The Company's most advanced development programs are focused on vaccines against HIV and hemorrhagic fever viruses (Ebola, Marburg, and Lassa). GeoVax also recently began programs to develop a vaccine against the Zika virus, and to evaluate the use of its MVA-VLP platform in cancer immunotherapy. GeoVax's vaccine platform supports in vivo production of non-infectious VLPs from the cells of the very person receiving the vaccine. The production of VLPs in the person being vaccinated mimics a natural infection, stimulating both the humoral and cellular arms of the immune system to recognize, prevent, and control the target infection.

Clinical trials for GeoVax's preventive HIV vaccines have been conducted by the NIH-supported HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN) with funding from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID). Overall, GeoVax's HIV vaccines, in various doses and combinations, have been tested in 500 humans with very encouraging results. Currently GeoVax has the most advanced vaccine for the subtype of HIV prevalent in North America and Western Europe. The company awaits funding for a Phase 2b efficacy trial to prove the vaccine protects against HIV. For more information, visit www.geovax.com.