Optimizing HIV vaccine design to trigger cross-neutralizing antibodies
Official title: Optimizing vaccine-elicited cross-neutralizing antibody responses to the HIV Env trimer apex
Funded at Scripps Research Institute, the · NIH-11412160 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This grant tests a vaccine approach aimed at teaching the immune system to make antibodies that can neutralize diverse HIV strains across people.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Scripps Research Institute, the NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2026 |
| Project end | July 31, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $937,343 |
| NIH project number | 1R01AI200742-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11412160 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are people at risk for HIV infection who may participate in future vaccine trials and contribute to understanding immune responses to HIV Env trimers.
✕Less likely to help
Individuals not eligible for HIV vaccine trials or those without interest in participation would not directly benefit.
What this research studies
Researchers will use specialized HIV Env trimer immunogens arranged on liposomes and boosted with a series of related antigens to guide the immune system toward producing broadly neutralizing antibodies. The project includes structural studies to understand how these antibodies interact with the trimer apex and how glycan deletions help access key sites. The ultimate goal is to create a vaccination strategy that elicits cross-protective antibodies in humans by following lessons learned from nonhuman primate studies and antibody cloning. The work combines immunogen design, animal modeling, and high-resolution structural analysis to refine vaccine candidates.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could lead to an HIV vaccine capable of protecting against multiple virus strains by teaching the body to generate broadly neutralizing antibodies.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies showed that specific trimer designs and boosting strategies can elicit cross-neutralizing antibodies in animal models, informing this work.
Where this research is happening
-
Scripps Research Institute, the
La Jolla, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wyatt, Richard Thomas — Scripps Research Institute, the
- Study coordinator: Wyatt, Richard Thomas
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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.