Immunogen May Help Target HIV

Researchers discovered an immunogen that could be used to induce the immune system to help target HIV.

Evidence has shown that immunogens can cause B cells to produce broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs), suggesting they could be used as an HIV vaccine strategy. In prior research, scientists used an immunogen that could bind to B cells.

These cells were engineered to express VRC01 class bnAbs, in addition to their germline precursors. However, it was inconclusive on whether immunogens could bind to naïve human B cells and whether there are enough naïve B cells present in different people to make this strategy viable.

During the current study, researchers analyzed different immunogens and compared their potency. They identified eOD-GT8, which showed the ability to bind well to naïve B cells, and outperformed a previous immunogen by a factor of 2100.

Researchers then analyzed millions of B cells from 15 HIV-negative people to determine the prevalence of B cells that interacted with eOD-GT8. The results of the study showed that approximately 96% of humans harbor these B cells. The data suggests that eOD-GT8 has the potential to be a promising candidate for vaccines in the future.