Description
tgAAC09 is an adeno-associated viral (AAV)-based prophylactic vaccine candidate designed to protect against HIV infection in HIV negative individuals and/or prevent progression to AIDS in people who become infected with HIV. AAV-based vaccines are used to deliver HIV antigens that are intended to stimulate the immune system and fight against HIV infection. We believe that using our AAV technology as a DNA delivery platform in a vaccine setting is promising because the tgAAC09 product candidate is designed to elicit both antibody and cell-mediated response, which are critical for effective prophylaxis against AIDS. Preclinical studies of AAV-based vaccines in animal models of HIV infection demonstrate that animals vaccinated with such a vaccine had robust B-cell and T-cell responses against the HIV proteins. Additionally, in an analogous animal model using simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) vaccinated animals subsequently challenged with a virulent strain of SIV exhibited reduced viral load in serum and increased resistance to SIV disease compared with non-vaccinated animals. These data were published in the Journal of Virology in January 2005. |
