In 1990, the growth of many infectious diseases was checked. However, during the same time, a virus, still unchecked, had wiped out millions. Researchers were always left speechless when the question of a vaccine to this deadly virus popped up. The virus was known as HIV. Detected in 1984, Human Immunodeficiency Virus/ Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) had nearly taken 30 million lives. The major concern for many researches is that HIV, as per now, cannot be prevented since no vaccine has been developed for it. The virus destroys the entire immune system by lowering the levels of CD4+ cells – the main constituent of a human body’s immune system. The reasons, which have stunted the growth prospects of an HIV’s vaccine are many; read on to know.
Reasons as to why there is still no vaccine for an HIV virus
In April 1984, researches declared that they would soon roll out a vaccine to the HIV virus within a span of just two years. The reasons to such heightened levels of optimism are still unknown. The factors held responsible for no development of an HIV vaccine are listed below.
Till date, there has been no recovery made from HIV virus. Unlike other infections such as chickenpox and measles – where a diseased person naturally made recovery with the help of medicines – in HIV no care or medicine can help in reversing the immunity’s deterioration. Moreover, whenever a person gets successfully recovered from a disease (say measles, chickenpox, etc.), the system gets immune to the ailment; such system becomes the model to develop a vaccine. However, no such human immune system is found that has withstood the attack of an HIV virus.
One name that is consistently striving to bring the best of vaccines to the world is Hilleman Laboratories. The company was established in Delhi and has adopted high-class vaccine development strategies for contributing to healthcare research India. The presence of state-of-the-art vaccines laboratories in the company’s premises has helped it grow by leaps and bounds. The company is a joint venture between merck & wellcome trust for creating sustainable vaccine development. Any other details can be found at – www.hillemanlabs.org.
Vaccine Research and Development 