the 30th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI), recently held, has been the scenario in which the results of four collaborative studies have been presented that evaluate new combinations and research strategies with potential activity against the HIV viral reservoir or improve the immune response to maintain virological control in the absence of antiretroviral therapy (ART).
These latest findings represent a multi-pronged approach underway in Gilead Sciences’ research program on curing this infection, including the data obtained from three studies evaluating strategies to maintain virologic control in the absence of ART.
Results from a phase 2 trial show that dual treatment with HIV broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs) produced a significant delay in viral rebound.
A Phase 1/2 proof-of-concept study conducted by the University of California, San Francisco, United States, with support from Gilead Sciences and the Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR), provides evidence that immunotherapy combination consisting of a vaccine, an immunomodulator and two bNAbs can provide virological control. Another independent phase 2 trial (Aelix-003) demonstrated that the combination of a vaccine and an immunomodulator induces a strong T-cell response.
“The results of the Phase 2 study exemplify the progress that research partnerships can bring in the search for a cure for HIV and demonstrate the potential of combined strategies to play a key role in that effort,” said Dr. Ole Søgaard, a professor in the Department of Infectious Diseases at Aarhus University, Denmark. “Further clinical research on the potential of bNAbs is warranted, as it could contribute to the discovery of new therapeutic approaches that transform HIV treatment for patients,” he continued.
A fourth preclinical study in a macaque animal model, conducted in collaboration with Gritstone bio, demonstrated that simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) vaccines in combination with immune modulators induced a strong immune response.
«The scientific knowledge generated by the studies presented in this edition of the CROI is allowing the progress on possible pathways to a cure for HIV and increasing global understanding of the role of broadly neutralizing antibodies, vaccines and immunomodulators in the future of people living with this virus,” said Devi SenGupta, Executive Director of HIV Clinical Development at Gilead Sciences. “We will continue to explore combination strategies in our quest to help end the HIV epidemic for everyone, everywhere,” she concludes.
