MHC-I-restricted HIV epitope processing, immune control and immunogen design

Abstract

More than 25 years after the discovery of HIV and despite several vaccine trials, the correlates of immune protection are still not identified. Successful vaccine strategies will likely involve induction of both humoral and cellular immunity in order to prevent or limit HIV infection and to stimulate protective immune responses in HIV-infected individuals. The major difficulties in this quest include the various mechanisms of immune escape developed by HIV and the fact that not all immune responses against HIV have strong antiviral functions. This article will focus on an underestimated aspect of any T-cell-based arm of vaccine strategies: the mechanisms of epitope processing and its contribution to the pattern of HIV-specific CD8+ T-cell responses. This article will also present current complementary research approaches towards the identification of CD8+ T-cell protective immune responses and the design of immunogens aimed at selectively inducing CD8+ T-cell protective immune responses against HIV, one of several critical requirements for an efficient vaccine design.