New Vaccine Produces Long-Term Elimination of Simian Immunodeficiency Virus

Although immunization might be able to prevent new infection with simian (monkey) immunodeficiency virus (SIV) or HIV, experts have assumed that, at best, immunization could do no more than keep the viral burden low in those already infected. Few people imagined that established infection might be curable by immunization, but a new study suggests otherwise.

A multi-institutional team inoculated monkeys with a vaccine containing both monkey cytomegalovirus and SIV sequences (CMV/SIV vector). Then, they infected the monkeys with SIV via rectal, vaginal, and intravenous routes. The virus reached local lymph nodes and distant tissues (e.g., spleen) despite the immunization. However, during 1 to 3 years of follow-up, many (but not all) of the imm…