The ability of HIV-1 to mutate represents a major challenge to current vaccine approaches. However, some individuals achieving control of HIV during natural infection seem unique in their dominant targeting by cellular immune responses of conserved regions of HIV that, if mutated, exact a substantial impact on viral replicative capacity, or fitness. Notably, the partial suppression of HIV in treated individuals harboring viruses with drug-resistant mutations has also been linked to impaired viral fitness. The convergence of these observations suggests that vaccines designed to focus immune responses narrowly against regions of HIV susceptible to highly deleterious mutations might prove effective in controlling viral replication to levels that slow disease progression and reduce transmission. Therefore, it will be crucial to identify these 'Achilles heels' of HIV that might represent uniquely susceptible targets, and test whether vaccine constructs enabling specific targeting of CD8(+) T-cell responses against such regions would enable the control of HIV and SIV.

Altfeld M. and Allen T.M. Trends Immunol. 2006 (Nov) 27: 504-510.

For the latest information on AIDS vaccine development visit AIDS Vaccine Development

SGM Meeting
The 160th Meeting of the Society for General Microbiology will be held in the University of Manchester (UK) from 26-29 March 2007. Full details at SGM Website

Bacterial Networks Conference
The European Science Foundation will hold a conference on Bacterial Networks 14-19 October 2006 at Sant Feliu de Guixols (Costa Brava), Spain. Full details at Conference Website

Bioluminescence and Chemiluminescence
The 14th International Symposium on Bioluminescence and Chemiluminescence will be held 15-19 October 2006 at Paradise Point Resort and Spa, San Diego, USA.

Viral Diseases
The 4th European Congress on Viral Diseases will be held 25-28 October 2006 in Budapest, Hungary. Full details at Conference Website

Marker Vaccines & DIVA Diagnostics
Conference to be held at Birkbeck College, London. Full details at Conference Website

Labels: conference

Stacey Schultz-Cherry (Wisconsin, Madison) and colleagues reported this month the inhibition of influenza virus infection by a peptide that prevents attachment to cells (J. Virol. 2006)

Recommended reading: Influenza Virology: Current Topics

Influenza A viruses continue to cause widespread morbidity and mortality. There is an added concern that the highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza A viruses, currently found throughout many parts of the world, represent a serious public health threat and may result in a pandemic. Intervention strategies to halt an influenza epidemic or pandemic are a high priority with an emphasis on vaccines and antiviral drugs. In these studies, we demonstrate that a 20-amino acid peptide (EB) derived from the signal sequence of fibroblast growth factor-4 exhibits broad-spectrum antiviral activity against influenza viruses including the H5N1 subtype in vitro. The EB peptide was protective in vivo even when administered post-infection. Mechanistically, the EB peptide inhibits the attachment to the cellular receptor preventing infection. Further studies demonstrated that the EB peptide specifically binds to the viral hemagglutinin (HA) protein. This novel peptide has potential value as a reagent to study virus attachment and as a future therapeutic.

Current topics on Influenza Virology

AIDS Vaccine Development: Challenges and Opportunities

Results presented by Safrit and his colleagues at the recent AIDS Vaccine conference demonstrate a number of encouraging results. The following presentations illustrate current progress:

The development of a new medicine that can fight persistent infections and/or the increase of the disease and contamination of others. This medicine is a paradigm change that, if a vaccine will not be found, can potentially protect large groups.

In addition another possible vaccine against HIV that activated the immunity of over 80% of the examined participants on a study of the medicine in the first trial phase.

Stronger reactions and progressions of the antibodies on HIV organisms by application of new methods.

The major importance of activating massive education and prevention methods specified to adolescents that form the most important risk group of infection.

The fight against the shortage of condoms and the importance of male circumcision.

Because of the unique human characteristics of the virus up till now, there have been limited possibilities for research on other species. For the first time however progress has been made by experimental HIV infections on mice with human bloodcells.

More information about AIDS Vaccine research can be found at AIDS Vaccine Development: Challenges and Opportunities

More information about AIDS Vaccine Conference 06 can be found at Aids Conference