Vaccine to Prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission

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Vaccine to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission to be put to test

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AIDS vaccine researchers are preparing to test a vaccine aimed at

protecting babies from contracting HIV through their mother's

breastmilk.

Just over one in 10 babies who contract HIV through maternal

transmission contract the virus through breastfeeding, but the use of

formula feed remains problematic in the Third World, either because women

cannot afford breastmilk substitutes or because they do not have access to

clean water to mix the formula.

Now the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative has reported that a group

of researchers at Makerere University in Uganda are preparing a trial

protocol for approval to start a phase-one vaccine trial among newborn

babies.

Only a limited number of patients are included in a phase-one trial, which

tests the safety of a product. If the research protocol is approved, it

will be the first time an HIV vaccine trial is conducted on babies outside

North America.

The first HIV vaccine trials on babies were conducted in 1993, but the

results of trials conducted so far have not been very promising.

According to the initiative, the notion of a neonatal HIV vaccine might

sound like a long shot, since there is still no effective adult vaccine,

but the bar for protection in infants may be lower. Rather than long-term

immunity, a neonatal vaccine need only protect for as long as babies are

breastfed.

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(Source: The Star, 2 November 2001)

http://news.hst.org.za/view.php3?id=20011108

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