Ends HIV vaccine trial in Deception but provides valuable data

cungkring.com: Once promising vaccine trial against HIV has been arrested after being ineffective in preventing the virus.

For researchers chasing a long hoped-for vaccine to prevent HIV transmission, the announcement was a disappointing setback.

That said, similar research currently being conducted underscores that the international effort to develop a vaccine and to fight against the global epidemic of HIV and AIDS continues on.

The news that the trial based in South Africa - called HVTN 702, or trial Uhambo - finished was announced MondayTrusted Source National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which sponsored the research.

An HIV vaccine is essential to ending the global pandemic, and we hope that this candidate vaccine would work. Unfortunately, he did not ", NIAID Director Dr. Anthony S. FauciTrusted source said in a press release. "Research continues on other approaches to a vaccine against HIV safe and effective, I think still can be achieved.

Disappointing, but not really a surprise
The trial began in 2016, registering 5,407 volunteers who were negative for HIV at 14 sites in South Africa.

Participants were sexually active men and women aged 18 to 35 years. Of the total population of volunteers, some were randomly divided into two groups, one given either the vaccine or placebo injections test.

They were all closely monitored and access to care given to HIV prevention, including pre-oral exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), the statement said.

An analysis of the study showed no significant difference in HIV infections among any people in the placebo group and those who actually received the test vaccine.

There were 129 HIV infections in people who received the vaccine and 123 new infections in the placebo group. While the trial was not successful, the researchers will continue to monitor the health of participants.

Dr. Ronald G. Collman, director of Penn Center for AIDS Research, said the mistrial was disappointing but not really a surprise to members of the research community about HIV. This is because previous research using the same components Uhambo test vaccine will not be effective.

Why put them together when one of them alone are not effective? Collman said nté. I do not think too many scientists are surprised. We were hopeful, but perhaps not surprised ".

Dr. Alan Taege, an infectious disease specialist at the Cleveland Clinic, the echoes of thoughts on Collman disappointment trial ends, but said that this trial is just Scratching the surface.

For Taege, just because this trial has not resulted in a vaccine does not mean it was a waste.

There is still a lot of work in progress in the world of vaccine against HIV. For this trial, like many others, there will be many more analyzes will be performed on the results , said Taege Healthline.

"They go back and analyze the study of these patients and see 'was a kind of antibody formation? For example. They will see if there is something we can learn from it and then press the work to try to reach a very good vaccine , he said.

I do not feel totally discouraged, he added.

A global effort, interconnected
Since the emergence of HIV, scientists have tried and failed to develop an effective vaccine. Collman said there had been several different approaches to try to decipher the code vaccine against HIV.

The first is an empirical approach" in which you essentially explained take a hypothesis and try some things and see if they work.

According to him, the studies that have been conducted to date have been largely empirical, with an infection reduction and making other 'softer', but without success to eliminate the virus.

Collman added that other approaches involve neutralization of the virus. This implies vaccinate people so they can hopefully develop antibodies to neutralize most or all strains of HIV.

Another approach is to try to create T cells - which play a central role in the immune response of a person to a virus - to essentially attack cells infected by HIV.

"The biggest area that has shown progress creates neutralizing antibodies broad spectrum. There was a tremendous amount learned in the last 10 years about what you would need to create antibodies neutralize HIV, "said Collman. It's not like an antibody to measles; not as an antibody to influenza. It is a very complicated antibodies .

He says there are several ways to come up with an effective antibodies against HIV. One is to try to create just the type of protein structure that would trigger a highly specific immune response to HIV.

Antibodies are hard for the body to develop. For HIV, should be successively analyze all sorts of types of immunogens that "coping" with this antibody as he attacks the HIV cell , said Collman. "There are ongoing studies right now to see how to create a broadly neutralizing antibody. "

The need to find a vaccine is naturally high. Since the beginning of the HIV epidemic, 75 million people have HIV. Approximately 32 million have died of it in the world, according to the World Organization OrganizationTrusted Source.

Despite the failure to find a cure or vaccine, great progress has been made in HIV care.

For example, adherence to modern drugs can ensure that people living with HIV can get an undetectable viral load of HIV in their bodies.

This means they can not effectively transmit the virus to their sexual partners, reports the Centers for Disease Control and PreventionTrusted Source.

When can we see the development of a vaccine against HIV?
Both Taege Collman and say it is unclear when that might be possible.

I think it is difficult to see in the next 5 years or 10 years if we will have a vaccine because there is still so much to learn. I think we are at a distance of sustainable vaccine for HIV, said Taege.

It is important to recognize this is not a site, study. There is an international effort, worldwide. People across the world right now working on various aspects of vaccine development , he said.

Collman say that he is encouraged by all the work on the development of neutralizing antibodies that could attack a cell infected with HIV.

We know that it should work, because if you take them and put them into a monkey, it can prevent monkeys from being infected, he said. So how can we get these antibodies to emerge in vaccination in a human?

Taege said the global crusade to find a vaccine offers hope.

In this interconnected effort among researchers around the world, whenever someone day working on something useful to contribute to the search for a vaccine, said Taege. I'm still hopeful.

The bottom line

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) announced MondayTrusted Source once promising vaccine trial against HIV in South Africa has been abandoned.

This came after a trial participant analysis showed roughly the same number of new HIV infections among participants who received the test vaccine and those who received placebo.

The vaccine was not to prevent the transmission of HIV.

The researchers say the news was disappointing but not surprising. This comes after numerous efforts over the past 3 years to develop a vaccine against HIV have failed to succeed.

That said, there is promising work is done all over the world, including hunting to try to create a neutralizing antibody that specifically targets the cells infected with HIV.