Vaccines

vaccine More than 30 million people worldwide live with HIV (UNAIDS 2008). Currently, there is no vaccine available to prevent HIV infection. Anti-retroviral therapy can control progression to AIDS but cannot cure or thwart spread of the disease, and for every individual that begins treatment about 3 more become infected. Historically, vaccines have significantly impacted the spread of infectious diseases such as smallpox, polio, measles, and yellow fever. Similarly, HIV vaccines represent the best long-term hope for ending the HIV pandemic.

South African scientists are launching clinical trials that will study preventive and therapeutic HIV vaccine candidates. The vaccines, developed by the South Africa AIDS Vaccine Initiative (SAAVI) and the University of Cape Town, will undergo human testing at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto and the Desmond Tutu HIV Center in Cape Town.

Articles below are all general information articles about vaccines. For news articles, please go to the news section, or use the search function.

Basics of Vaccines

What is a vaccine?
A vaccine is a medical product designed to stimulate your body's immune system in order to prevent or control an infection. An effective preventive vaccine trains your immune system to fight off a particular microorganism so that it can't establish a serious infection or make you sick.

What is the difference between a preventive HIV vaccine and a therapeutic HIV vaccine?
Therapeutic HIV vaccines are designed to control HIV infection in people who are already HIV positive. Preventive HIV vaccines are designed to protect HIV negative people from becoming infected or getting sick. This fact sheet focuses on preventive HIV vaccines.

Preventative Vaccine

preventative It has been known for many years that HIV is an extremely difficult virus to render harmless, and no cure presently exists. Research into a vaccine is one of several strategies to reduce the worldwide harm from AIDS, with other approaches based upon antiviral treatments such as highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), and social approaches such as safe sex.

There is evidence that a vaccine may be possible. Work with monoclonal antibodies (MAb) has proven that the human body can defend itself against HIV, and certain individuals remain asymptomatic for decades after HIV infection. More recently in 2009, a number of potential candidates for antibodies and early stage results from clinical trials have been announced by various teams. However these are early results, and have either not been developed to the point of human testing, or not fully peer reviewed and replicated by other teams, at this time.

The urgency of the search for a vaccine against HIV stems from the AIDS-related death toll of over 25 million people since 1981. Indeed, in 2002, AIDS became the primary cause of mortality due to an infectious agent in Africa.

Therapeutic HIV Vaccines

Numerous therapeutic HIV vaccine studies have taken place over the years. Though, none have produced impressive results, there continues to be interest in this type of approach. Theoretically, a therapeutic vaccine might offer the potential for a monthly injection with few side effects as a way to treat HIV, prevent or delay the need for anti-HIV medications and/or allow for prolonged periods of time off of anti-HIV medications. This potential is what keeps research in this area going despite disappointing study results.

The goal of a therapeutic vaccine is to bolster immune responses against HIV in hopes of boosting the body's ability to control HIV replication. For most people, natural immune responses against HIV are not enough to control HIV disease for the long-term. It is hoped that by boosting immune responses artificially that HIV disease progression could be prevented or significantly delayed.

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