National Laboratory for HIV Immunology

The National Laboratory for HIV Immunology (NLHI) is the national resource for HIV Immunology.  This program contributes to both the domestic and global effort against the HIV/AIDS epidemic by providing proficiency testing programs for diagnostic and prognostic tests for HIV disease. It also provides leadership on how to best measure markers of HIV disease progression and conducts research on ways to stop HIV transmission and progression to AIDS.

These activities are achieved through provision of several services:

• CIQAP – Canadian Immunology Quality Assessment Program, is a national accredited (ISO 17043) proficiency testing (PT) program that ensures quality monitoring of immune markers of HIV disease progression.
• QASI® - Quality Assessment and Standardization of Indicators for HIV, is a trademark-registered international PT program that assists resource poor regions hardest hit by the HIV pandemic by helping to ensure quality diagnostic and prognostic testing services. QASI® provides PT services to laboratories and point-of-care testing facilities for both immunological and molecular-based testing. QASI-LI (Leucocyte Immunophenotyping) for CD4 T-cell numeration, QASI-VL (Viral Load) for quantitative molecular testing, and QASI-EID (Early-Infant Diagnosis) for qualitative molecular testing specifically for diagnosis in infants.
• Evaluation of new technologies for monitoring HIV disease and progression to AIDS.
• Basic research to expand the knowledge base of HIV/AIDS in the international scientific community including research on immune control of HIV disease progression; HIV vaccines and therapeutics, mucosal immunity or resistance to HIV transmission, and studies to both monitor and improve long term health outcomes and comorbidities in  HIV infected subjects.