There have been years of research and work that has gone into deciding whether or not there would be a cure for HIV/AIDS, or possibly an effective vaccine. With the COVID-19 vaccine going into effect and the booster being released, Moderna has begun working on clinical trials that have the same biological technology found in the COVID-19 vaccine. The immunogens being tested were created by the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative and Scripps Research. The hope of the immunogens is to elicit white blood cells to turn into antibodies that can neutralize HIV. For the clinical trials, 56 healthy HIV-negative adults will be partaking in this experiment. 48 will receive one (or two) doses of the vaccine while 32 will receive a booster.

HIV has had its effects on the world with over 37.7 million people diagnosed with the disease. HIV kills white blood cells in the immune system that are used to fight disease, and it can lead to developing AIDS, which is fatal. Treatment for HIV can cost thousands of dollars, which is a problem due to the fact that many regular people can’t afford that. People are stuck with the burden of having to deal with this disease and with no type of support, their fate could be fatal.

These clinical trials are taking place in the Hope Clinic of Emory Vaccine Center, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and the University of Texas Health Science Center. The first vaccines have been given at George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences 

The possibility of a new vaccine and the opportunity to conduct clinical trials is a new point in history for the medical industry that can be documented. If clinical trials come back to be successful, then many people could be saved from something so damaging. People wouldn’t have to worry about the spread of the disease as well as medical costs.

SOURCE:

WebMD, “Moderna Launches Clinical Trials For HIV Vaccine” https://www.webmd.com/hiv-aids/news/20220128/moderna-hiv-vaccine