HIV attacks the immune system. There is no cure for HIV, but there are many methods of preventing it. One example is always using protection when having sexual intercourse.
There is currently no vaccine for HIV, but scientists are working to develop one. It’s difficult as the virus can change itself to escape the antibodies created. But even the failed trials help researchers learn more about the virus and how to fight it.
HIV treatments today are well tolerated and often result in the virus levels becoming undetectable, especially when treated early. This helps prevent transmission to others.
What is HIV?
HIV is the virus that can cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). According to the World Health Organization (WHO), by the end of 2021, around 38.4 million people were living with HIV.
This condition kills an essential element of the human immune system called T cells. This reduces how well our immune system can fight infections.
HIV transmission to other people can happen through any of the following ways:
- having unprotected sexual intercourse
- sharing needles and syringes
- perinatally during pregnancy, childbirth, or nursing
When untreated, HIV can be life threatening. An HIV vaccine would stimulate the immune system to produce an immune response to protect your body from an HIV infection.
To avoid getting HIV, make sure you always wear protection during sexual intercourse. If you’re at risk of contracting HIV, a healthcare professional may also prescribe you preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP).
This is a prevention treatment plan available for people that have sexual partners with HIV or for people that have had unprotected intercourse. It can reduce the risk of getting HIV by up to 99%.
Are HIV vaccines under development?
Scientists are working on developing an HIV vaccine, but this is very challenging due to the changeable nature of the virus. It’s extremely rare for someone to clear an HIV infection by themselves. Due to these complexities, every HIV vaccine created has been ineffective.
Scientists are now trying to develop new vaccines that can trigger the production of specific T cells and antibodies to make our immune system resistant to HIV.
The vaccines that researchers are trying to develop are based on three different types of mechanisms. These include:
- B-cell immunogens: B-cells have an important role in creating antibodies. Scientists are trying to create B-cell immunogens that can stimulate the production of HIV antibodies to prevent an HIV infection.
- T-cell immunogens: This consists of studying how T-cells react when they get in contact with HIV. Scientists are developing T-cell immunogens that are highly reactive to many different HIV variants and can trigger a prompt immune reaction.
- Viral vector replication: Scientists are trying to create an HIV vector that can infect cells and trigger the production of an HIV antigen that can prevent future infections.
- Messenger RNA: Similar to COVID-19 vaccines, researchers are trying to create a synthesis of a protein that can send the immune system an instruction and stimulate the production of HIV antibodies.
One 2020 review of several studies and vaccine trials notes that developing a vaccine that stimulates both the innate (a general response to any antigen) and adaptive (a specific response to a particular antigen) immune systems should be the future research focus.
