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A group of scientific institutions are teaming up to take aim at the growing HIV/AIDS crisis in the southern United States. 

Gilead Sciences Inc. (NYSE: GILD), Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, the Southern AIDS Coalition and the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work on Dec. 4 announced the Gilead COMPASS Initiative, a $100 million commitment of financial resources and support for organizations working to end HIV/AIDS. 

The South lags behind other parts of the country in terms of HIV prevention and care indicators, according to the Atlanta-based U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Eight of the 10 states with the highest rates of new HIV diagnoses are in the South, and 45 percent of those who live with the disease live in a South, though it is home to only one-third of the U.S. population. 

Fulton County's diagnosis rates are also five times the national average, and Foster City, Calif-based Gilead biotech recently has shown a big commitment to helping address the epidemic. Grady Health System's Ponce Center for HIV/AIDS treats one of every four HIV/AIDS cases in Georgia, and Gilead donated $2 million to help it and build a surgical center across the street from its main campus. Read more about that here.