final program.qxd - Parallels Plesk Panel

OP 10.2
HIV Vaccine Research : Challenges and Difficulties
Marc P. Girard, Lyon - France
The history of the AIDS pandemic is now well into its third decade. Tremendous progress
has been made in our understanding of the complex interaction between HIV and the host
immune response. Potent antiviral drugs have been developed that can control virus
replication. However, many basic questions related to the feasibility of developing an HIV
vaccine still remain unanswered, such as the identification of protective immune
mechanisms, the design of envelope immunogens able to elicit virus-neutralizing
antibodies with broad specificity against primary virus isolates, how to address the high
variability of the virus and its remarkable ability to evade immune responses through
escape mutations, just to name a few. At this time, the attention of the AIDS vaccine field
has focused on the induction of HIV-specific cellular immune responses, especially CTL,
in the hope that such a response would enable the vaccinated persons to better control
their virus load following infection, slow down or even prevent their progression to clinical
AIDS and decrease the probability of secondary transmission. This hypothesis, however,
has so far received only little confirmation in the SIV/macaque model, where virus control
following vaccination and challenge often appears to be short-lived, ultimately leading to
vaccine failure. We will review some of the challenges to be met in the development of an
efficacious HIV vaccine candidate, including the need to induce an immune barrier at the
site of the genital, rectal and intestinal mucosae to prevent HIV infection.
ABSTRACTS
“ Focusing FIRST on PEOPLE “ 81 w w w . i s h e i d . c o m