Can innate immunity be manipulated to benefit HIV-infected individuals?
The identification of molecules that affect innate immunity remains a challenge. Bridges pointed out that it might be better to find agents that stimulate innate immune cell expansion and function in vivo rather than simply to administer already identified molecules, such as cytokines, which may be insufficient to mimic the complex interactions that lead to responses in vivo. Fully characterizing innate immune responses in infected humans or animals remains to be accomplished, as does the development of nonhuman primate models to study potential interventions. Can vaccines be useful in the treatment of HIV-infected individuals in the era of HAART? With therapeutic vaccine candidates, the route and schedule of administration, as well as the type of patient populations (for instance, acutely versus chronically infected patients) that can most benefit from such vaccines, have yet to be determined. In addition, there are safety issues to consider. Early attempts to study therapeutic vaccin
