The implications of antigenic diversity for vaccine development

The reactivity of human monoclonal and polyclonal anti-HIV-1 antibodies demonstrates that shared epitopes, including those that induce neutralizing antibodies, exist and are recognized by the human immune system. A priori, there is no reason why cross-clade neutralizing antibodies could not be induced by an appropriately constructed HIV vaccine. But to construct such a vaccine, it is critical to understand, as completely as possible, the antigenic structure of HIV, to establish and identify immunologic classifications for HIV, and to choose rationally the minimum number and types of viruses from these immunologic groupings that will induce the broadest protective responses.