Three mRNA HIV Vaccine Candidates Launch Clinical Trial
The Maryland-based National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) announced it launched an early-stage Phase 1 study evaluating three experimental HIV vaccines based on a messenger RNA (mRNA) platform.
The NIAID confirmed on March 14, 2022, it is sponsoring the HVTN 302 study, and the NIAID-funded HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN), based at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, WA, is conducting the trial.
The specific mRNA sequences contained in the vaccines were designed and developed by investigators at the NIAID-funded Scripps Consortium for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Development at the Scripps Research Institute and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation-funded IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center at Scripps, in collaboration with scientists at Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Moderna, Inc.
Moderna manufactured the investigational vaccines through an NIAID-supported contract.
"Finding an HIV vaccine has proven to be a daunting scientific challenge," said Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. NIAID director, in a related press release.
"With the success of safe and highly effective COVID-19 vaccines, we have an exciting opportunity to learn whether mRNA technology can achieve similar results against HIV infection."
The HVTN 302 study will examine whether the following three experimental HIV mRNA vaccines are safe and can induce an immune response:
- BG505 MD39.3 mRNA,
- BG505 MD39.3 gp151 mRNA, and,
- BG505 MD39.3 gp151 CD4KO mRNA.
Each investigational vaccine candidate is designed to present the spike protein found on the surface of HIV that facilitates entry into human cells. Each of the experimental vaccines encodes for different but highly related, stabilized proteins.
Moderna Inc. is currently advancing two HIV preventative vaccine strategies based on germline targeting and immune-focusing approaches.
In addition to this HIV trimer mRNA vaccine trial of mRNA-1574, Moderna is partnering in the testing of HIV vaccine antigens mRNA-1644 and mRNA-1644v2-Core, being evaluated in a Phase I trial sponsored by IAVI and supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
None of the three vaccine candidates can cause HIV infection.
More information about the HVTN 302 study is available on ClinicalTrials.gov using the identifier NCT05217641.
The NIAID conducts and supports research at the National Institutes of Health, the nation's medical research agency, that includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Note: This news post edited the NIH news release for clarity and was curated for mobile readers.
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