POZ Community Forums
Meds, Mind, Body & Benefits => Research News & Studies => Topic started by: J220 on May 09, 2007, 09:57:16 pm
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Nothing too substatially new on this, but it's an update from the University of Western Ontario's page on Dr. Yong Kang ( http://communications.uwo.ca/com/alumni_gazette/research_notes/aids_vaccine_could_be_available_within_three_years_2007041912906/ )
In short, the development of the therapeutic vaccine is proceeding as planned, and is actually being manufactured as we speak (or rather, read/ write), in anticipation of phase I and II trials.
According to Doctor Kang, the estimated time for this to be ready is three years. In my view, this is one of the most promising vaccines under development out there!
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AIDS vaccine could be available within three years
"This vaccine has the potential of saving millions of lives,” says Yong Kang, a professor in the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at The University of Western Ontario. It’s always wise to have realistic expectations, but Kang hopes he is closer to finding a cure for HIV/AIDS – and he’s already much nearer to succeeding than most have ever been.
Kang’s tireless quest to develop a vaccine against HIV/AIDS has spanned nearly two decades and has just entered a new phase. “The results look encouraging, and we are now moving onto pre-clinical animal toxicology trials,” he says.
Kang’s work has produced one of the few technologies to make it so far in a process where dozens of other potential vaccines have failed. His technology could not only produce antibodies against HIV, but also prime T-cells to destroy cells harboring the virus, essentially curing a patient with HIV infection.
“We created a genetically modified HIV and recombinant human adenoviruses to develop a vaccine which can prevent HIV infection and clear HIV-infected cells. It can produce antibodies against HIV and educate one type of white blood cells to find infected cells and kill them,” explains Kang.
With the help of Western’s Industry Liaison office, Kang licensed his inventions to Curocom, a publicly traded holding company in Korea. Curocom is sponsoring research in Kang’s lab and recently opened a subsidiary office at Western’s Research Park to accelerate aspects of the commercialization process of the HIV vaccine program.
Kang’s vaccine is currently being manufactured in a Maryland laboratory in anticipation of FDA approval to continue with Phase 1 and 2 human clinical trials. His vaccine could be available for therapeutic use within three years and for use as a preventive vaccine within the next six years.
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That would be extremely cool, of course, but how are they thinking of going through phases i, II, and III...plus getting regulatory approval...in three years?? Would that even be possible under the best of conditions?
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Available within 3 years and he hasn't started phase 1 yet?
Next!
Milker.
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One year per phase doesn't seem unresonable, assuming it works well.
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That would be a first, and HIV is not FDA's priority.
I wouldn't get excited before phase II results. I cannot get excited if the guy hasn't even tried his medicine on anyone yet. We've seen too many of those. However, if it reaches phase II, then fuck yeah.
3 years fda approval for something that has not even started phase I has never been seen before. And the FDA has other things to be excited about: diabetes, cancer, etc. I seriously doubt about this being FDA approved in 3 years.
Milker.
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Yes, it would be a first, but then again, all we need is one vaccine to work! This one could be it.
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Hey, USA is NOT the only place that have FDA, OK?
Probably the vaccine already passed phase I or II in, let's say, Japan or France. and may be passed phase III in those place in 2010. THEN, the vaccine will come back to US for USA government approval. In that case, we migth have to fly to Japan or France to get the shot.
YAHHOOOOO!!!
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Maybe, but the article states that the vaccine is about to enter phase I and doesn't refer to phases in any other country. Just some research in Korea.
I guess we'll find out in 2010, huh? I agree with Milker that we should probably wait until after phase II to get more enthusiastic, but it is an interesting idea.
Just out of curiosity, didn't the first protease inhibitors zip through trials and FDA approval REALLY fast? I seem to remember reading it was a few months for phase II and maybe a year for phase III, though maybe I'm wrong. At the time it seemed like the meds came out of nowhere.
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It seems if the FDA wants something approved it will get approved. I hope the research this guy has done is leading to a cure and vaccine. I would love to see HIV/AIDS disappear. I know I don't want this stuff so bring it on!
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THERE IS NO MONEY IN A CURE!!!
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So a little bit of research shows that Dr Kang already claimed a vaccine 19 years ago, but failed. All communication about this comes from Western, a university in Ontario where he works as a teacher in virology. The first communication about this was when he patented his new vaccine on october 17, 2006. The communication posted by J220 is from the Western Alumni Gazette.
I haven't seen anything tangible about this beyond the doors of Western university, so I will not hold my breath. However, if he's been working on a vaccine for 20 years, it could well be that he finally found something that works, so let's wait and see :)
Milker (who wants the magic shot)
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Maybe, but the article states that the vaccine is about to enter phase I and doesn't refer to phases in any other country. Just some research in Korea. Just out of curiosity, didn't the first protease inhibitors zip through trials and FDA approval REALLY fast? I seem to remember reading it was a few months for phase II and maybe a year for phase III, though maybe I'm wrong. At the time it seemed like the meds came out of nowhere.
This appears to be true, I don't think this has been tested in humans, and of course that remains the main- and the only one the matters- caveat. As Dr. Kang himself states, just because the vaccine worked properly in animals, it doesn't necessarily mean it will work with humans. This is refreshing caution, coming from the researcher and designer of the vaccine himself. On the other hand, he, and Curocom, seem mighty confident that things will work out, confident enough that they are putting up $15 million dollars, with a commitment of $50 million total, for taking this all the way to production So, only thing to do now is watch, and hope...J.
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So a little bit of research shows that Dr Kang already claimed a vaccine 19 years ago, but failed. All communication about this comes from Western, a university in Ontario where he works as a teacher in virology. The first communication about this was when he patented his new vaccine on october 17, 2006. The communication posted by J220 is from the Western Alumni Gazette.
I haven't seen anything tangible about this beyond the doors of Western university, so I will not hold my breath. However, if he's been working on a vaccine for 20 years, it could well be that he finally found something that works, so let's wait and see :)
Milker (who wants the magic shot)
True, but that being said, I'd be more willing to take seriously posts about research coming from Canada and Korea than those weird posts about an Iranian cure that were popping up in here a few months ago ;D ;D
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http://communications.uwo.ca/com/alumni_gazette/research_notes/aids_vaccine_could_be_available_within_three_years_2007041912906/ (http://communications.uwo.ca/com/alumni_gazette/research_notes/aids_vaccine_could_be_available_within_three_years_2007041912906/)
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Following is the recent publication by Dr. Kang.
Chung Y, Chang JH, Kim BS, Lee JM, Kim HY, Kang CY.
Laboratory of Immunology, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea.
In the spleen, exogenous antigen is preferentially presented by CD8alpha(+)CD11b(-) DC to CD8 T cells and by CD8alpha(-)CD11b(+) DC to CD4 T cells. However, it is not yet clear whether the same rule applies to other secondary lymphoid organs. To address this issue, we first classified secondary lymphoid tissues into three categories based on the expression pattern of CD8alpha and CD11b in C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice: (a) spleen, (b) mesenteric lymph node (MLN) and (c) other peripheral lymph nodes (PLN). We then analyzed the OVA-specific T cell-stimulating capacity of each DC subset after intravenous injection with soluble OVA. Our results show that, regardless of tissue origin, CD8alpha(-)CD11b(+) DC generally present OVA to CD4 T cells, a finding that held true as well for CD8alpha(+)CD11b(+) DC in PLN. In striking contrast, CD8alpha(+)CD11b(-) DC in spleen, CD8alpha(-)CD11b(+) DC in MLN and CD8alpha(+)CD11b(+) DC in PLN mainly cross-present OVA to CD8 T cells in their respective tissues. Of note, CD8alpha(-)CD11b(+) DC in MLN and CD8alpha(+)CD11b(+) DC in PLN present OVA to both CD4 T and CD8 T cells. Therefore, the antigen-presenting capacity of each distinct DC subset is determined by its anatomic environment in combination with its surface phenotype.
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I haven't seen anything tangible about this beyond the doors of Western university, so I will not hold my breath. However, if he's been working on a vaccine for 20 years, it could well be that he finally found something that works, so let's wait and see :)
Milker (who wants the magic shot)
Western is a very reputable university, the Canadian equivalent of an Ivy League school.
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Then what will happen with forums, with the POZ magazine and many big pharma projects in development? :-\
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No offense to fellow members,but i'd take a vaccine/cure over a forum any day.
Then what will happen with forums, with the POZ magazine and many big pharma projects in development? :-\
no offense,but i'd take a vaccine/cure over a forum any day.
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THERE IS NO MONEY IN A CURE!!!
Well, yes there is. First for the patentholder and manufacturer. Then in those advanced countries where gov't pay for HIV meds there are huge cost savings to be realized. And for the private insurers, likewise huge savings. For employers who will see a reduction in benefit costs, huge savings. So maybe big pharma loses,though I suspect a lot would like the "halo' that goes with discovering an HIV "cure".
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I was excited about this one when I read the first press releases in the fall during my 'obsessive period' when I still didn't know if I was poz or not and thought I could find a cure online - boyfriend was poz but tests were still coming back neg for me. Boy am I glad that time is over...although not so glad how it came out
ANYWAY - it sounded good at the time. As far as I can tell Dr. Kang and Western are the only ones working on this and it isn't already being tested anywhere else, as was suggested above. The curocom investment does imply that someone with resources believes in this. Does seem strange that there is so much hype considering it hasn't been tried in humans yet...but Kang has a long and good rep, so lets keep our fingers and toes and everything else crossed.
Of course my big question for this and any other time the word 'cure' gets thrown around...what about the brain and other places where this damn virus hides besides the blood?
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I think if the vaccine turns out to be capable of eliciting an effective antidbody response in humas as it did in animals, it will be systemic, meaning the modified immune cells will seek out and kill infected cells wherever they may be.
As opposed to drugs and medications, which do have limitations in terms of reaching all areas in the body- i.e. brain- once the body is 'trained' with a vaccine to fight off a particular pathogen, it will do so with its immune system in all areas of the body.
Mind you, this is my understanding, nothing more.
And yes, this seems promising. No question that Dr. Kang himself stands on solid reputation. This doesn't translate into immediate success for his vaccine, but at least we can rule out quackery on this one. The man knows his business. May he be the one to have found the cure!!! Regards, J.
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Amen to that!
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With regard to the brain, etc., how is it that syphilis (and yes, I KNOW it's a bacteria, but the point is that it, like HIV, is a contagion) can infect the brain, sexual fluids, etc., and yet antibiotics can somehow penetrate everywhere to kill it off completely, thus curing it. Moreover, this was all discovered/approved in the 1940s, when technology was a joke compared to what it is today. Wouldn't this prove that a medicine can in fact penetrate all (or nearly all) regions of the body to kill off an invader? If antibiotics can do this to syphilis, why can't a potent set of antiretrovirals or a therapeutic vaccine do this to HIV?