Oxford University has started its Phase I of a clinical trial to test the safety and efficacy of a new HIV Vaccine Candidate, called HIVconsvX.
The vaccine is designed to work on a variety of HIV-1 strains. At this stage in the trial, 13 healthy volunteers who are HIV negative will be given two doses, four weeks apart.
Most HIV vaccines in testing now work by stimulating the antibodies produced by B-cells, but this vaccine targets the T-cells, which grant a stronger immune system response and can destroy pathogens. The vaccine aims these potent cells at the areas of the highest HIV viral load.
Results from this trial are expected to be released within the next year.
Given that an HIV vaccine currently does not exist and the only existing options are to treat positive cases with antiretroviral therapies , a preventive vaccine could be ground breaking on a global scale. It is also hoped that an effective, safe vaccine might be able to inoculate people who are HIV positive and potentially cure them or at least prevent them from transmitting the virus.
Despite the effectiveness of antiretroviral therapies, a vaccine is still the best solution to stop the AIDS pandemic -- and since the earliest HIV outbreaks in the 80’s, a safe and effective vaccine has yet to be created.
This trial, the HIV-CORE 0052 trial, is being tested under the European Aids Vaccine Initiative, funded by the European Commission.
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