Vaccines Designed From Analysis of Recent HIV Infections

描述(申请人提供)：有效的疫苗是阻止艾滋病流行的唯一可行的方法。开发有效的艾滋病毒疫苗的最大挑战是抗原变异。因此，本项目的目的是通过表征偶发(新)感染的gpl20基因之间的亚型内序列差异，并识别将被制造并进入临床试验的新抗原，以加强对抗原变异的理解。样本将从VaxGen目前的美国艾滋病疫苗第三阶段临床试验中收集。氨基酸序列将使用新的软件进行分析，该软件将序列变异映射到gp120的3D晶体结构上，以定义可能改变抗原谱的替换。这项研究将提供目前在整个北美流行的病毒序列的数据库，参考大约感染时间、地理分布和来源材料的性质。这些数据将通过指导为下一代艾滋病毒疫苗选择最合适的包膜抗原，帮助纳入新的抗原，以提高当前针对B亚型变种的艾滋病毒疫苗的效力。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): An effective vaccine is the only practical way to halt the AIDS epidemic. The greatest challenge in developing an effective HIV vaccine is antigenic variation. Therefore, the present project aim is to enhance the understanding of antigenic variation by characterizing intra-subtype sequence variation among gpl20 genes from incident (new) infections, and identifying novel antigens that will be manufactured and advanced into clinical trails. Samples will be collected from VaxGen's current Phase III U.S. AIDS vaccine clinical trials. Amino acid sequences will be analyzed using new software that maps sequence variation onto the 3D crystal structure of gp120 to define substitutions that may alter the antigenic profile. This study will provide a database of virus sequences currently circulating throughout North America, with reference to approximate time of infection, geographic distribution, and the nature of source material. These data will aid in incorporating new antigens to improve current HIV vaccine efficacy against variants of subtype B by guiding selection of the most appropriate envelope antigens for next generation HIV vaccines.