THURSDAY, Dec. 18, 2003 (HealthDayNews) -- Human testing of a vaccine to prevent HIV/AIDS has started in Belgium.
The small-scale human trial of the tgAAC09 vaccine, which will include 50 male and female volunteers, is designed to determine the safety of the vaccine and whether it elicits immune responses. If so, the vaccine may move on to a large-scale trial.
The tgAAC09 vaccine differs from most other HIV/AIDS vaccines now in trials in that it's potentially a single-shot vaccine, rather than one that would require multiple injections over time. A single shot vaccine could prove especially useful in developing countries, where most new HIV infections occur.
The tgAAC09 vaccine is designed to elicit two different types of immune system responses -- an antibody response and a cell-mediated response. Results from animals studies suggest the vaccine is safe and can rouse a robust immune system response after a single injection.
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