Background: The TB/HIV Research Lab's GAlA vaccine is being developed from selected HIV T cell epitopes that are conserved (the same or very similar) across several strains (or clades) of HIV, that are promiscuous (bind to cells from genetically diverse human immune systems), and are likely to elicit both of the major types of T cell immune responses (class I-restricted cytotoxic T cells and class II-restricted T helper cells). Ultimately, these epitopes will be inserted into a DNA plasmid, which will be the primary delivery vector for the vaccine. A """"""""boost"""""""" vaccine would contain the same epitopes, in a viral vector or as a protein in adjuvant. ? ? NIH R01 """"""""Epitope Driven HIV Vaccine Development"""""""" A150528-01A1 provides funds for pre-clinical studies of the GAlA vaccine epitopes using blood from HIV -positive patients recruited in Providence (predominantly clade B infected patients). To confirm the cross-clade immunogenicity of the epitopes, screening in vitro using blood from HIV-positive patients infected with different clades or strains of HIV needs to be performed. ? ? Proposal: This Fogarty FIRCA proposal would support a collaboration between researchers in Bamako, Mali and the TB/HIV Research Laboratory at Brown University. The goal of this AIDS FIRCA would be to screen the GAlA vaccine epitopes using blood from HIV-infected Malian patients recruited in Bamako, Mali. The GAlA Vaccine / Bamako, Mali project would take place at an existing center of research excellence funded by the NIH (NIAID) at the Faculte de Medicine, University of Mali (The Malaria Research training Center, or MRTC). In the short term, this research would allow the research team to confirm candidate HIV vaccine eptopes in the context of HIV in Mali. In the long term, the goal of this collaboration is to develop a close working relationship between the TB/HIV Research Lab and Malian investigators, who might then host Phase clinical trials of the GAlA vaccine when it is ready. ? ?
| De Groot, Anne S; Rivera, Daniel S; McMurry, Julie A et al. (2008) Identification of immunogenic HLA-B7 ""Achilles'heel"" epitopes within highly conserved regions of HIV. Vaccine 26:3059-71 |
