Special antibodies provide a direction for AIDS vaccine research and development.
In 20 16, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that there were about 36.7 million people infected with AIDS in the world, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, which was a major problem endangering global human health. Among them, about 1% people infected with HIV will produce antibodies to prevent the invasion of most virus strains, and these antibodies provide the key for developing effective AIDS vaccines.
The genome of HIV is the key
Researchers from the University of Zurich (UZH) and the University Hospital of Zurich (USZ) have now proved that the genome of HIV is the decisive factor in determining what kind of antibodies are formed. It is found that a few people infected with HIV- 1 will produce very special antibodies, which can not only fight against one virus strain, but also neutralize almost all known virus strains. The research focus of developing HIV vaccine is to find out the factors that lead to such antibodies.
The research team has been looking for this antibody for many years, and some factors have been confirmed, such as virus load, virus diversity, infection duration and the influence of race on the immune response of infected people. Huldrych Günthard, deputy director of infectious diseases and epidemiology department of USZ, said: "In the latest research, we can determine another important factor: HIV gene is the key. 」
The research opportunities for researchers are the data and biological blood samples of about 4,500 HIV-infected patients recorded in the generational study of HIV in Switzerland and the primary HIV infection study in Zurich. The researchers found 303 potential transmission pairs, that is, the RNA viruses of these patients are similar, indicating that they may be infected by the same virus strain.
Dr Roger Kouyos, the first author of the study, explained: "By comparing the different immune responses produced by these patients, we can prove that HIV itself has a certain influence on the degree and specificity of antibody responses. 」
Special membrane proteins provide wider protection.
Anti-HIV antibodies will bind to protein on the surface of the virus. These membrane proteins will change with different virus strains. Therefore, researchers examined patients with very similar viral genomes more carefully and looked for membrane proteins with high activity and effective neutralizing antibodies. "We found that a special membrane protein is necessary for effective defense," explained Alexandra Trkola, a virologist at UZH and director of the Institute of Medical Virology.
Searching for an ideal membrane protein amplification study
In order to develop more effective HIV- 1 vaccine, it is necessary to find out the membrane proteins and virus strains that cause widespread immunity. Therefore, they plan to expand the scope of research. Trkola said, "We have found a suitable virus strain and started to develop immunogens. 」
The current medical technology is only aimed at drugs to improve the survival rate, and there is no way to cure AIDS. It is expected that in the near future, these scientists who are working hard will be able to successfully develop an AIDS vaccine and end the incurable situation of AIDS.