# Autologous HIV antibodies for viral control

> **NIH NIH R21** · BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL · 2021 · $286,535

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The primary goals of the proposed study are to determine the impact of autologous neutralizing antibodies in
selecting the rebounding HIV variants after treatment interruption and contributing to HIV post-treatment
control. Although the majority of HIV-infected persons will experience rapid viral rebound after ART
interruption, there are rare individuals, termed post-treatment controllers (PTCs), who demonstrate sustained
virologic suppression for months or years after treatment cessation. Our analysis of the CHAMP study of HIV
PTCs has shown an increase in post-treatment control for individuals initiating ART early after infection.
However, key knowledge gaps in the field include our incomplete understanding of which viral variants will lead
to HIV rebound after treatment interruption (i.e., the “reboundable reservoir”) and mechanisms behind post-
treatment control, including how early ART initiation lowers the barrier to HIV remission. Neutralizing antibodies
represent a key adaptive immune response against a broad range of viruses. While anti-HIV antibodies arise
during untreated acute infection, maturation of the immune response requires time, as it can take several
months before potent autologous neutralizing antibodies (aNAbs) against HIV are developed. However,
continuous viral replication in the absence of ART allows for rapid viral escape and renders the humoral
response largely ineffective in controlling HIV infection. Early ART initiation has been found to restrict the size
and diversity of the HIV reservoir, while preserving B-cell antiviral immunity. In this proposal, we plan to assess
the role of aNAbs in selecting for rebounding viral variants and mediating post-treatment HIV control. The
proposed studies have the potential to lead to key paradigm shifts in the field, including that anti-HIV immune
responses can mature and evolve after early ART initiation, that the viral populations driving HIV rebound
during ART interruption is not a purely stochastic process, and provide the first mechanistic explanation behind
the ability of early-ART initiation to lower the barrier to HIV remission.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10327100
- **Project number:** 1R21AI155152-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL
- **Principal Investigator:** Jonathan Li
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $286,535
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-07-01 → 2023-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10327100

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10327100, Autologous HIV antibodies for viral control (1R21AI155152-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10327100. Licensed CC0.

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