Prevalence of cross-reactive HIV-1-neutralizing activity in HIV-1-infected patients with rapid or slow disease progression
Schuitemaker et al. • AIDS • 2009 • Volume 23 - Issue 18
Special Author Introduction
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A vaccine against HIV-1, which could either protect against HIV-1 acquisition and/or disease progression, is desperately needed. Protective vaccines against other viral infections all elicit humoral immune responses and also HIV-1 vaccine design has increased its focus on the design of an immunogen that is capable of eliciting HIV-1 specific neutralizing antibodies. Ideally, these vaccine elicited neutralizing antibodies should be effective against HIV-1 variants from multiple subtypes. These so called broadly or cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies against HIV-1 were considered to be rare in natural infection. Indeed, only few examples of HIV-1 specific broadly neutralizing antibodies are known to date. This rarity could be a consequence of the fact that the native envelope on the virus may shield its vulnerable epitopes that could otherwise elicit cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies. Alternatively or in addition, the ability of the human B cell repertoire to generate HIV-1 specific cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies may be limited. To gain a better insight in the ability of the native envelope of HIV to elicit cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies and/or the capacity of the B cell repertoire to make this type of antibodies, we here studied the prevalence of cross-reactive neutralizing activity in serum of HIV-1 infected individuals. Moreover, to see if cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies may protect against HIV-1 disease progression, their prevalence was analyzed in HIV-1 infected individuals with a long-term asymptomatic or progressive disease course.
Our study demonstrates that the ability of the native HIV-1 envelope trimer to elicit cross-reactive neutralizing activity in serum is higher than anticipated, also indicating that the human B cell repertoire is capable of generating this type of antibodies. However, the prevalence of cross-reactive neutralizing activity was similar in HIV- infected progressors and non-progressors, implying that to be protective, this line of defence should be in place to prevent acquisition.
Hanneke Schuitemaker
Professor in Virology
Academic Medical Center at the University of Amsterdam
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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