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In the search for a vaccine against the AIDS pathogen
HIV scientists have made important progress. An active substance has produced an immune response in humans and protected monkeys against the infection, said the newspaper "The Lancet" on Saturday. The next step is to test the drug on 2,600 women in South Africa.
"The results are promising, but we must remain cautious," said medical professor Dan Barouch of Harvard University, AFP. Data did not prove that people could be protected from HIV with the vaccine
In a laboratory study, 72
monkeys received an injection of this drug and a virus similar to HIV. Two-thirds of the animals were therefore completely protected from infection by the vaccine. Barouch and his team also conducted a study of 393 healthy adults aged 18 to 50 from East Africa, South Africa, Thailand, and the United States. . Part of the group received the active substance, the remaining participants received only one placebo. Professor Barouch said the drug tested had triggered strong immune responses in humans.
Green light for the next phase of the HIV vaccine
In addition, the drug caused side effects in only a few participants. and diarrhea, dizziness or back pain.
Therefore, vaccine research can now move to the next phase: the drug will be injected at 2,600 women in South Africa to see if it can actually prevent AIDS. The results are expected in 2021/2022
Finding a vaccine against AIDS is extremely difficult because the HI virus
is highly adaptive. Globally, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 37 million people are infected with HIV or already living with AIDS. Each year, about 1.8 million people newly infected with the virus, which destroys the body's immune system. About one million people die each year from its consequences.
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