THERAVAC: Evaluation of a new therapeutic vaccination strategy for HIV infection

• Research unit: EU RFP
• Project number: 02.0455

Key words (English)

Life Sciences; Medicine; Health; Safety; Scientific Research; Social Aspects

Alternative project number (English)

EU project number: QLK2-CT-2002-01299

Research programs (English)

EU-programme: 5. Frame Research Programme - 1.1.2 Control of infectious diseases

Short description (English)

See abstract

Further information (English)

Full name of research-institution/enterprise:
Centre hospitalier universitaire vaudois CHUV
Division d'immunologie et d'allergie
Laboratoire d'immunopathologie du SIDA

Abstract (English)

Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) dramatically decreases in HIV-related morbidity but does not eradicate HIV and is associated with severe toxicities. To improve clinical management of HIV infection the TheraVac Demonstration Project will evaluate a new strategy of immunotherapy using highly attenuated poxvirus-based anti-HrV vaccines (NYVAC/MVA) in phase I/II clinical trials in HIV-infected patients.

The objectives of the Project are to demonstrate:
1) the safety of these vaccines in HIV-infected patients under HMRT;
2) their capacity to increase numbers and breadth of HIV-specific T cells in order to restore a strong immune control of HIV, compared to the Canary pox vaccine;
3) to allow prolonged interruptions of treatments.

A principal deliverable of TheraVac is to show that the collaboration of new vaccines produced in Europe and antiretroviral scan limit time on therapy and associated drug toxicity and costs.

References in databases (English)

Swiss Database: Euro-DB of the
State Secretariat for Education and Research
Hallwylstrasse 4
CH-3003 Berne, Switzerland
Tel. [phone]
Swiss Project-Number: 02.0455