The news creates an optimistic picture in a world where more than 37 million people are living with HIV and 1.8million new cases of HIV infection every year.
A scientist developing an HIV vaccine has passed it through to the next phase, creating hope for the future after more than 40 years of research and development.
The participants selected in the experiment were from 12 clinics in East Africa, South Africa, Thailand, and the USA. The vaccine “HIV-1” proved safe and is currently set to go to the next phase which will be conducted on 2600 women in Southern Africa in a trial called imbokodo, a Zulu word meaning ‘rock’.
“I would say that we are pleased with these data so far, but we have to interpret the data cautiously. We have to acknowledge that developing an HIV vaccine is an unprecedented challenge, and we will not know for sure whether this vaccine will protect humans,” said a professor at Harvard Medical School and the director of the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research, the study co-author Dr. Dan H. Barouch.
A side experiment using the various strains of the vaccine was conducted on monkeys and the most effective result showed 67% of monkeys were protected.
The news creates an optimistic picture in a world where more than 37 million people are living with HIV and 1.8million new cases of HIV infection every year.
Moreover, the scientists are fast to temper the optimism saying that the process still has a long way to go and that a successful trial does not necessarily mean a viable vaccine.