mRNA-LNP HIV-1 trimer boosters elicit precursors to broad neutralizing antibodies.
Xie, Z., Lin, Y.C., Steichen, J.M., Ozorowski, G., Kratochvil, S., Ray, R., Torres, J.L., Liguori, A., Kalyuzhniy, O., Wang, X., Warner, J.E., Weldon, S.R., Dale, G.A., Kirsch, K.H., Nair, U., Baboo, S., Georgeson, E., Adachi, Y., Kubitz, M., Jackson, A.M., Richey, S.T., Volk, R.M., Lee, J.H., Diedrich, J.K., Prum, T., Falcone, S., Himansu, S., Carfi, A., Yates 3rd, J.R., Paulson, J.C., Sok, D., Ward, A.B., Schief, W.R., Batista, F.D.(2024) Science 384: eadk0582-eadk0582
- PubMed: 38753770 
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adk0582
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
8F92, 8F9G, 8F9M, 8VFV - PubMed Abstract: 
Germline-targeting (GT) HIV vaccine strategies are predicated on deriving broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) through multiple boost immunogens. However, as the recruitment of memory B cells (MBCs) to germinal centers (GCs) is inefficient and may be derailed by serum antibody-induced epitope masking, driving further B cell receptor (BCR) modification in GC-experienced B cells after boosting poses a challenge. Using humanized immunoglobulin knockin mice, we found that GT protein trimer immunogen N332-GT5 could prime inferred-germline precursors to the V3-glycan-targeted bnAb BG18 and that B cells primed by N332-GT5 were effectively boosted by either of two novel protein immunogens designed to have minimum cross-reactivity with the off-target V1-binding responses. The delivery of the prime and boost immunogens as messenger RNA lipid nanoparticles (mRNA-LNPs) generated long-lasting GCs, somatic hypermutation, and affinity maturation and may be an effective tool in HIV vaccine development.
Organizational Affiliation: 
The Ragon Institute of Mass General, MIT, and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.