A new possible HIV vaccine that uses a genetically-modified version of the virus is heading into Phase II trials. The results of an earlier trial showed it provoked an immune response against the virus, but now we need to see if that response is strong enough to protect someone from getting infected with HIV in the first place.
The vaccine uses an inactivated—or “dead”—version of the HIV virus, the first vaccine of this type for HIV. Previously, inactivated vaccines haven’t been attempted for HIV because it was considered too risky, but this candidate uses a version of the virus that has been genetically modified—swapping out some of the genes with genetic material from honey bees—to make it less virulent and easier to mass produce.

 

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