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Nancy L. Haigwood , Ph.D.
Mission
As part of SBRI’s Viral Vaccines Program, Dr. Haigwood’s work is centered around the development of vaccines
and therapies to combat the transmission of HIV/AIDS.
Research
The Haigwood laboratory studies the immunological control of the primate lentiviruses, including HIV-1, SIV, and SHIV. The primary focus of the laboratory is on understanding the role that humoral immunity, especially neutralizing antibodies
(NAbs), plays in blocking and limiting infection.
Dr. Haigwood and her colleagues study the development of HIV
NAbs in vivo in primate models and in humans to determine how
NAbs recognize sequentially diverse viruses.
They are also heading a project on perinatal transmission, focusing on the role of
NAb in limiting transmission of SHIV from mothers to infants. Using this knowledge, Dr. Haigwood and her lab design and test
passive antibody therapy and novel vaccine approaches that can elicit
NAbs effective against patient HIV-1 viral isolates.
Her goals are to understand how to elicit effective
antiviral immunity that can control or block HIV infection. The projects are united in the use of related technologies and systems, particularly immunology, primate models, pathogenesis, and viral phylogeny.
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Themes |
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Examine role of neutralizing antibodies in control of viral infection and transmission;
understand mechanisms by which NAbs are generated during infection |
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Design new immunogens that elicit neutralizing antibodies against primary HIV isolates |
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Utilize primate models for AIDS in
proof-of-concept experiments to limit infection or disease in children
and adults
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| Program Accomplishments |
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Designed and brought "from the bench
to the clinic" one of the first HIV vaccines while at Chiron
Corporation |
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Developed novel vaccines that have been
shown to keep viruses under control in preclinical tests |
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Demonstrated that treatment with high levels of antibodies significantly prolongs life
and accelerates beneficial immunity |
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Developed a unique primate
mother-to-child transmission model for understanding the role of
maternal immunity in reducing infection |
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Collaborations |
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Washington National Primate Research
Center |
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Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center |
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Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology,
NIAID, NIH |
Support for Dr. Haigwood’s current research is provided by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
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