Carissa Wong is a person.
An electron micrograph of an HIV particle that is budding from a T cell is part of the immune system.
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
Out of 36 people who received a two-dose HIV vaccine, 35 produced an immune response against the virus.
The early-stage trial was designed to demonstrate safety and a proof-of-concept for a new approach to HIV vaccine. It's not clear if the vaccine protects against HIV. Booster doses are likely to be required based on the levels of the two-dose regimen.
It is difficult to develop an HIV vaccine due to the rapid evolution of the virus.
A group of researchers are trying to develop a vaccine that stimulates a type of immune cell called B-cells. There are parts of the HIV virus that are different between strains of the disease.
Only a small percentage of B-cells that are specific to the viruses make broadly neutralising antibodies.
This subset of B-cells may be activated when a vaccine is used.
In order to assess the effectiveness of this approach, the University of Washington in Seattle recruited 48 volunteers without HIV to test a vaccine that stimulates B-cells to make HIV-specific broadly neutralising antibodies.
The vaccine contains a piece of HIV that helps it enter cells.
Thirty-six of the participants were given a low or high dose of the vaccine. The volunteers in the control group were given a solution.
The participants gave blood samples for 16 weeks after they received the injections. At the end of the study, 97 percent of those who received the low or high vaccine doses had HIV-specific broadly neutralising antibodies. The participants who received the high or low vaccine doses had slightly different levels of Antibody.
Two of the participants in the study had HIV at the end of the study. It's not clear why this happened. The participants might have had immunity against the virus.
Mild side effects, such as fatigue, headaches and pain at the site of injection, were experienced by 98% of the participants.
Gary Kobinger is a professor at the University of Texas and he says the paper describes the best B-cell immune response he has ever seen. It is technically cutting edge as well as pursuing a completely novel approach to vaccinations.
The vaccine hasn't been shown to protect against HIV infections. He says that more than two doses would be required to prevent infections.
It is possible that this approach can help in the development of vaccines against other fast-mutating Viruses.
It would be a new tool in the arsenal of vaccinologists if it worked.
The journal's title is "science."
There are more on this topic.
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