mRNA approaches to create stronger, broader, and longer-lasting protection against HIV
Official title: HIV mRNA vaccine strategies for efficient priming, diversity and durability of immune responses
Funded at La Jolla Institute for Immunology · NIH-11310862 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project aims to use mRNA vaccine methods to help the immune system make broader, longer-lasting antibodies that could protect against many HIV strains.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | La Jolla Institute for Immunology NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project start | April 1, 2024 |
| Project end | March 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $829,725 |
| NIH project number | 5R61AI183471-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11310862 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
This research is most relevant to people interested in future HIV vaccine trials, especially HIV-negative individuals at risk of infection and potentially volunteers in early human immune-response studies.
✕Less likely to help
People seeking an immediate treatment or cure for an existing HIV infection are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this vaccine development work.
What this research studies
Researchers are using mRNA vaccine technology to deliver HIV envelope proteins in ways intended to better prime immune cells and sustain germinal center activity, which helps mature antibodies. They will compare mRNA-delivered antigens to traditional protein vaccines and study the signals that drive long-lived germinal centers and durable immune memory. Much of the work will use laboratory and animal models to map immune responses and design vaccine constructs that favor broadly neutralizing antibodies. The goal is to identify vaccine designs that could move into human testing in the future.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could lead to vaccines that induce broadly neutralizing antibodies and provide longer, wider protection against diverse HIV strains.
How similar studies have gone: mRNA vaccines have produced strong, durable immune responses for COVID-19, but using them to generate broadly neutralizing antibodies against HIV remains largely experimental and unproven.
Where this research is happening
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La Jolla Institute for Immunology
La Jolla, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Ramezani-Rad, Parham — La Jolla Institute for Immunology
- Study coordinator: Ramezani-Rad, Parham
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.