US Scientists One Step Closer to HIV Vaccine

In the latest research by scientists at Scripps Research and IAVI have been able to succesfully make an HIV vaccine that elicits antibodies and can neutralize a wide variety of HIV strains. The results seen in the immunity have taken researchers one step closer to developing an effective HIV vaccine

Crux of the Matter

1. The researchers analysed the antibodies of the rabbit that responded most strongly and identified two distinct types of bnAb.

2. The tests showed that “broadly neutralizing” antibodies, or bnAbs, targeted at least two critical sites on the virus.

3. Tests conducted by the research team confirms that vaccination can elicit the kinds of antibodies that are needed to provide broad protection against HIV.

4. The bnAbs can neutralize multiple HIV strains because they bind to critical sites on the virus that do not vary much from strain to strain.

5. Researchers widely assume that a vaccine must elicit bnAbs to multiple sites on HIV if it is to provide robust protection against this ever-changing virus.

6. Professor in the Department of Immunology and Microbiology at Scripps Research, Richard Wyatt. said, “It’s an initial proof of principle but an important one, and we’re now working to optimize this vaccine design.”

7. The research is supported by National Institutes of Health & Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Curiopedia

The Human Immunodeficiency Viruses (HIV) are two species of Lentivirus that causes HIV infection and over time acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. AIDS is a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive. HIV infects vital cells in the human immune system. HIV infection leads to low levels of CD4+ T cells through a number of mechanisms and after they decline below a critical level, cell-mediated immunity is lost, and the body becomes progressively more susceptible to opportunistic infections, leading to the development of AIDS. According to UNAIDS, about 35 million people worldwide have died of HIV. More Info

Curated Coverage

1. Scripps Research – Experimental HIV vaccine successfully elicits broadly neutralizing antibodies to the virus

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