Britta Wahren Project
We have designed small DNA constructs to be used for immunotherapy and propylaxis in human immunodeficiency virus disease and in colorectal carcinoma.
Research project
The resulting vaccines have been used in human trials in four different countries in Europe and Africa. They appear to be very effective in priming for immune responses against a variety of HIV strains because they stimulate both innate, humoral and cell-mediated immunities. Genetic vaccines have several advantages: they make the person produce the vaccine protein in his own cells, and the vaccine thus becomes tailor-made for the immune responses of the vaccinated individual. The HIV DNA vaccine will be studied for decrease of viral reservoir in children born to HIV-infected mothers in South Africa. In a consortium involving European countries we hold a PhD school for learning on HIV and now also Covid-19 immunology and vaccines.
Research networks
Collaborators
- Merlin Robb, for clinical HIV studies internationally, Military HIV research program and National Institutes of Health, USA. www.hivresearch.org/
- Paolo Rossi and Paolo Palma for pediatric HIV vaccine studies, Tor Vergata University and Bambino Gesu Hospital, Italy. https://penta-id.org/ & https://www.epiical.org/
- Margaret A. Liu, honorary doctor and foreign adjunct professor, Protherimmune and Karolinska Institutet, USA and SE.
- Joan Joseph Munne, for PhD education in EU project EAVI2020, University Hospital Vall d´Hebron, Spain.
- Athina Kilpeläinen, PhD examination Barcelona 2020, IrsiCaixa, Barcelona, https://www.irsicaixa.es/en.
- Jorma Hinkula, for animal research. https://search.liu.se/en/?query=hinkula
- At the Karolinska Institutet primarily Pontus Blomberg, Maria Isaguliants, Stefan Petkov, Karl Ljungberg, Gunnel Biberfeld, Eric Sandström, and the Francesca Chiodi group.
Publications
60 Years of viral vaccines.
Wahren B.
Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2022 Feb 25:1-4.
Codon optimization and improved delivery/immunization regimen enhance the immune response against wild-type and drug-resistant HIV-1 reverse transcriptase, preserving its Th2-polarity.
Latanova AA, Petkov S, Kilpelainen A, Jansons J, Latyshev OE, Kuzmenko YV, Hinkula J, Abakumov MA, Valuev-Elliston VT, Gomelsky M, Karpov VL, Chiodi F, Wahren B, Logunov DY, Starodubova ES, Isaguliants MG
Sci Rep 2018 May;8(1):8078
HIVIS-DNA or HIVISopt-DNA priming followed by CMDR vaccinia-based boosts induce both humoral and cellular murine immune responses to HIV.
Hinkula J, Petkov S, Ljungberg K, Hallengärd D, Bråve A, Isaguliants M, et al
Heliyon 2017 Jun;3(6):e00339
Preferential Targeting of Conserved Gag Regions after Vaccination with a Heterologous DNA Prime-Modified Vaccinia Virus Ankara Boost HIV-1 Vaccine Regimen.
Bauer A, Podola L, Mann P, Missanga M, Haule A, Sudi L, Nilsson C, Kaluwa B, Lueer C, Mwakatima M, Munseri PJ, Maboko L, Robb ML, Tovanabutra S, Kijak G, Marovich M, McCormack S, Joseph S, Lyamuya E, Wahren B, Sandström E, Biberfeld G, Hoelscher M, Bakari M, Kroidl A, Geldmacher C
J Virol 2017 Sep;91(18):
Early antiretroviral therapy in children perinatally infected with HIV: a unique opportunity to implement immunotherapeutic approaches to prolong viral remission.
Klein N, Palma P, Luzuriaga K, Pahwa S, Nastouli E, Gibb DM, et al
Lancet Infect Dis 2015 Sep;15(9):1108-1114
HIV-DNA Given with or without Intradermal Electroporation Is Safe and Highly Immunogenic in Healthy Swedish HIV-1 DNA/MVA Vaccinees: A Phase I Randomized Trial.
Nilsson C, Hejdeman B, Godoy-Ramirez K, Tecleab T, Scarlatti G, Bråve A, et al
PLoS One 2015 ;10(6):e0131748
Immunotherapy with an HIV-DNA Vaccine in Children and Adults.
Palma P, Gudmundsdotter L, Finocchi A, Eriksson LE, Mora N, Santilli V, et al
Vaccines (Basel) 2014 Jul;2(3):563-80
Broad immunogenicity of a multigene, multiclade HIV-1 DNA vaccine boosted with heterologous HIV-1 recombinant modified vaccinia virus Ankara.
Sandström E, Nilsson C, Hejdeman B, Bråve A, Bratt G, Robb M, Cox J, Vancott T, Marovich M, Stout R, Aboud S, Bakari M, Pallangyo K, Ljungberg K, Moss B, Earl P, Michael N, Birx D, Mhalu F, Wahren B, Biberfeld G,
J Infect Dis 2008 Nov;198(10):1482-90
Cellular cytotoxic response induced by DNA vaccination in HIV-1-infected patients.
Calarota S, Bratt G, Nordlund S, Hinkula J, Leandersson AC, Sandström E, Wahren B
Lancet 1998 May;351(9112):1320-5
COMPARISON OF TUMOUR ANTIGENS IN AKR AND GROSS VIRUS (PASSAGE A)-INDUCED LEUKAEMIAS.
WAHREN B
Nature 1965 Jan;205():409-10
Other references
- Professor Britta Wahren has been interviewed by Swedish National Radio (SverigesRadio P4) to mark World Aids Day on December 1st, 2016 .The interview looks at how far research has progressed with the development of an HIV vaccine. Listen to the interview podcast (in Swedish).
- After receiving the KI Silver medal 2015 for outstanding achievement in the field of medical research, Britta Wahren talks about her research past and present.
- Wahren B & Wahren P. Framtidens farliga smitta – hur kan vi skydda oss. Britta Wahren, Patrik Wahren, KI University Press 2007.
- In 2015 Britta Wahren received the Grand Silver Medal Award of Karolinska Institutet for outstanding medical research.
- Britta Wahren participates in a interview with the Swedish Radio (SR) called "Nyttiga virus kan göra dig frisk!".
- Contributing to KI essay pages and documentation project on the history of Karolinska Institutet http://www.wikiki.se/ and https://ki.se/om-ki/essasamling.