Why some people naturally keep HIV under control
Official title: Elite controllers as a model for a cure of HIV-1 infection
Funded at Massachusetts General Hospital · NIH-11163480 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at why a small group of people called elite controllers keep HIV at undetectable levels without treatment, to help develop ways to silence the virus for others living with HIV.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R37 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Massachusetts General Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | September 23, 2020 |
| Project end | August 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $861,601 |
| NIH project number | 5R37AI155171-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11163480 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are people living with HIV, particularly rare elite controllers who naturally suppress the virus, and others willing to provide blood or tissue samples for detailed laboratory analysis.
✕Less likely to help
People without HIV or those seeking an immediate cure should not expect direct personal health benefits from participation, since this work is focused on laboratory analysis and understanding mechanisms.
What this research studies
If you join, researchers will use blood and other samples from people with HIV—especially elite controllers—and examine the DNA of the cells where HIV hides. They will map exactly where intact HIV proviruses are inserted in the chromosomes and measure nearby chromatin and epigenetic marks using tools like ATAC-seq. The team will compare these patterns to people with typical HIV infection to see if viruses in elite controllers sit in parts of the genome that keep them deeply silent. That information could guide new approaches to lock the virus away so it cannot reactivate.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could point to ways to keep HIV permanently silent and reduce the need for lifelong antiretroviral therapy.
How similar studies have gone: Past successes include rare cures after stem-cell transplants and prior research linking proviral integration and epigenetics to latency, but applying these analyses specifically to elite controllers is a newer, less-tested approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Yu, Xu — Massachusetts General Hospital
- Study coordinator: Yu, Xu
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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.