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Growing up in Africa, Marie-Claire Gauduin, Ph.D. witnessed firsthand the devastation caused by HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. She decided to study science and work on ways to combat this global killer. Her heart still breaks for the way the African people have suffered in the AIDS epidemic.
Courtesy: NIH Image Gallery
Now, as a Texas Biomed scientist, she is studying ways to combat HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Dr. Gauduin and her team came up with a patented way to create a vaccine. It’s a genetically-engineered vaccine strategy to prevent HIV infection that targets the outer layers of body structures that are the first site of contact for the virus.
Designed to be a single dose that lasts a lifetime, the vaccine will lead to the continual production of disease-fighting cells without being eliminated by the immune system. The experimental vaccine is directed to what are known as the musocal layers of the epithelium in the genital and rectal areas where the virus enter the body.
Marie-Claire Gauduin, Ph.D., in Africa
Another feature of the vaccine system is that it could be adapted to other infections.
Now, Dr. Gauduin is working on another approach to vaccinating against HIV using a different virus that targets the same area of the body HPV (human papilloma virus).
Dr. Gauduin has more than 25 years of experience in HIV/AIDS research and medical microbiology.