HUMAN-IMMUNODEFICIENCY-VIRUS VACCINES

This chapter describes the progress in the development of a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) vaccine. It focuses principally on HIV, ranging from the properties of the virus that are most relevant for vaccine development to experimental trials of candidate HIV vaccines in chimpanzees and in humans. Present and future vaccine strategies as well as the application of vaccines as therapeutic measures are also considered. Over the past several years, substantial progress has been made in the quest for a vaccine against AIDS. This stems in large measure from a better understanding of the basic features of HIV but has been punctuated by successful feasibility studies of experimental vaccines in animal models. These developments have provided the impetus for the biomedical research establishment to pursue a vaccine against HIV as a legitimate target goal. Because the number of effective neutralization and cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) targets is low in the case of HIV, this provides the virus with a considerable survival advantage with respect to the host immune defense, given its ability to escape both humoral and cellular mechanisms under immune pressure. The use of live vectors that are both effective and safe alone or in combination with other forms of immunization appears to hold great promise against HIV disease and may become a reasonable facsimile for whole HIV preparations that are precluded from use because of safety considerations. © 1993, Academic Press Inc.