Injected antibodies provide long-term protection against HIV

Trial results show extended protection against HIV in monkeys treated with monoclonal antibodies.

Use of antiretroviral therapy could contribute to a reduction in HIV virulence at the population level, study finds
HIV is evolving relatively rapidly, which is contributing to a reduction in virulence at the population level

National Institutes of Health (NIH) / Wikimedia Commons

So far, little progress has been made in generating an effective vaccine against HIV. An alternative approach is the prophylactic administration of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) against the virus, a strategy used against hepatitis A before a vaccine was available. 

Researchers explored the efficacy of four anti-HIV neutralising mAbs in 24 monkeys. After receiving the mAb infusion, the animals were challenged weekly with a low dose of a chimeric simian/HIV. 

The researchers found that mAb administration extended the median time to infection by between 8 and 13 weeks, compared with a median of 3 weeks among control animals. One treated monkey was protected for 23 weeks. 

Reporting in Nature (online, 27 April 2016)[1]
, the team says that the use of anti-HIV mAbs in areas where the virus is endemic could have a major impact on transmission.

References

[1] Gautam R, Nishimura Y, Pegu A et al. A single injection of anti-HIV-1 antibodies protects against repeated SHIV challenges. Nature 2016. doi: 10.1038/nature17677

Last updated
Citation
Clinical Pharmacist, CP, June 2016, Vol 8, No 6;8(6):DOI:10.1211/PJ.2016.20201124

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