AARAI is inviting researchers, academics, practitioners and institutions to collaborate on the Herbal Antiviral Research and Therapeutics Programme (HART), an emerging research programme investigating traditional, herbal and naturopathic approaches to viral infections.

The first research stream will focus on traditional and herbal approaches to Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV-1 and HSV-2), bringing together traditional knowledge, ethnobotany, phytochemistry, virology, pharmacology, public health and clinical research.

The programme will explore traditional uses, available scientific evidence, candidate selection, formulation development, preclinical research and, where supported by the evidence and appropriate approvals, future clinical research.

AARAI is particularly interested in collaborators with expertise in ethnobotany, traditional medicine, pharmacognosy, phytochemistry, virology, pharmacology, toxicology, naturopathy, clinical research, epidemiology, biostatistics and formulation science.

Interested collaborators may contribute traditional knowledge, research expertise, laboratory capacity, clinical research experience, methodological support, institutional partnership or other relevant resources.