MIT develops single-shot vaccine that effectively protects against HIV

A team from MIT and the Scripps Research Institute has developed a single-dose vaccine that provides robust protection against HIV. Vaccines typically consist of immunogens (which trigger the body's immune response) and adjuvants (which enhance the immune system's response). The team's work involved combining two adjuvants to significantly increase the response of the immune system compared to either vaccine alone.

In tests, laboratory mice given the new vaccine showed a broader spectrum of antibodies against the HIV antigen compared to those given only one of the adjuvants. The researchers found that the vaccine with two adjuvants increased the response of type B cells two to three times more than those formulated with a single adjuvant. These cells, explains New Atlas , produce antibodies that recognize a pathogen to which the body has already been exposed and give it a greater chance of fighting off dangerous viruses.

The new approach caused the two adjuvants to accumulate in the mice's bodies for a month, during which time they prompted their immune systems to produce plenty of antibodies against the HIV protein.

Professor J. Christopher Love highlights that “what is potentially powerful about this approach is that we can achieve long-term exposures based on a combination of adjuvants that are already reasonably well-known, so they do not require a different technology. It is a matter of combining these adjuvants to enable low-dose or potentially single-dose treatments.” The team highlights that this approach could also be used to formulate protein-based vaccines to protect against more complex viruses, such as influenza or SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19.