HIV Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about HIV, including details on human immunodeficiency virus, testing, treatment, prevention, vaccines, aids.

Generation of CD8+ T-cell responses by a recombinant nonpathogenic Mycobacterium smegmatis vaccine vector expressing human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Env.

Cayabyab MJ, Hovav AH, Hsu T, Krivulka GR, Lifton MA, Gorgone DA, Fennelly GJ, Haynes BF, Jacobs WR, Letvin NL

Department of Medicine, Division of Viral Pathogenesis, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, 330 Brookline Ave., Boston, MA 02130, USA.

Because the vaccine vectors currently being evaluated in human populations all have significant limitations in their immunogenicity, novel vaccine strategies are needed for the elicitation of cell-mediated immunity. The nonpathogenic, rapidly growing mycobacterium Mycobacterium smegmatis was engineered as a vector expressing full-length human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) HXBc2 envelope protein. Immunization of mice with recombinant M. smegmatis led to the expansion of major histocompatibility complex class I-restricted HIV-1 epitope-specific CD8(+) T cells that were cytolytic and secreted gamma interferon. Effector and memory T lymphocytes were elicited, and repeated immunization generated a stable central memory pool of virus-specific cells. Importantly, preexisting immunity to Mycobacterium bovis BCG had only a marginal effect on the immunogenicity of recombinant M. smegmatis. This mycobacterium may therefore be a useful vaccine vector.

Published 27 January 2006 in J Virol, 80(4): 1645-52.
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