title: Successful vaccination of immune suppressed recipients using Listeria vector HIV-1 vaccines in helminth infected mice.
abstract: Vaccines for HIV, malaria and TB remain high priorities, especially for sub-Saharan populations. The question is: will vaccines currently in development for these diseases function in populations that have a high prevalence of helminth infection? Infection with helminth parasites causes immune suppression and a CD4+ Th2 skewing of the immune system, thereby impairing Th1-type vaccine efficacy. In this study, we conduct HIV vaccine trials in mice with and without chronic helminth infection to mimic the human vaccine recipient populations in Sub-Saharan Africa and other helminth parasite endemic regions of the world, as there is large overlap in global prevalence for HIV and helminth infection. Here, we demonstrate that Listeria monocytogenes functions as a vaccine vector to drive robust and functional HIV-specific cellular immune responses, irrespective of chronic helminth infection. This observation represents a significant advance in the field of vaccine research and underscores the concept that vaccines in the developmental pipeline should be effective in the target populations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases and Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases, University of Georgia, 501 DW Brooks Drive, Athens, GA 30602-7387, USA. lisaluvsciens@gmail.com
authors.forename: Lisa M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Shollenberger
authors.forename: Cac
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bui
authors.forename: Yvonne
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Paterson
authors.forename: Kelsey
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Allen
authors.forename: Donald
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Harn
mesh_terms: D016915:AIDS Vaccines / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology*; D000818:Animals; D002908:Chronic Disease; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005822:Genetic Vectors / Q000235:genetics*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000276:immunology*; D007111:Immunity, Cellular / Q000276:immunology; D007165:Immunosuppression Therapy; D008089:Listeria monocytogenes / Q000235:genetics*; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D051379:Mice; D012552:Schistosomiasis / Q000276:immunology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D014611:Vaccination
chemical_list: D016915:AIDS Vaccines