New Vaccination Method For Herpes Is A Potential HIV Inhibitor

YALE UNIVERSITY, CT, USA. Researchers were able to successfully get the human body’s natural antibodies to actually set up a defensive tissue blockage which was not even possible until today. Although they may have discovered the key to finding the actual vaccine for genital herpes, it may take some more time to develop the cure itself. However, this development can be considered as a medical breakthrough.

The process was done using a two-part immune-system-boosting strategy known as “prime and pull”. The researchers have also concluded that they might have discovered an important mechanism that will lead to the development of vaccines not only for herpes but also for other sexually transmitted deceases and infections such as the AIDS-causing HIV-1.

Antibodies called memory T cells are responsible for boosting the human body’s immune system which makes it work harder to fight off a certain type of infection each time it attacks the body. The only problem with these memory T cells is that they don’t just stay in one part of the body. They circulate around the body, affecting other more sensitive tissues that don’t readily harbor them and causes it to become more susceptible to different types of infections.

The research was conducted at the Yale University by Akiko Iwasaki. The objective of the study was to actually make the memory T cells stay where they are needed the most. The “prime and pull” method is done using the conventional vaccination followed by a topical applications of chemokines which causes the memory T cells to concentrate more on the tissues where they don’t usually take up residence.

This method has been proven to increase the immune system of a particular area such as the vagina from genital herpes by putting up a defensive wall that protects the cells from it. In the future, this method could also be potentially used to fight off other infectious deceases such as HIV from entering and affecting any specific tissue.