Overview
- At the Boston ASGCT meeting Tuesday, investigators reported that two participants kept HIV at undetectable or very low levels for nearly two years and nearly one year after stopping daily drugs.
- The Phase 1 study used a single infusion of CAR-T cells made from each person’s T cells and engineered to both find HIV-infected cells and resist infection themselves, and no serious side effects were reported.
- Participants who began standard HIV therapy soon after infection showed the strongest control, while people with longer-standing infection did not sustain control and returned to medication.
- The modified cells faded within weeks and responders had brief viral blips, so the team is studying how control persisted and is preparing a larger trial later this year.
- Backers say this autologous approach could reach far more people than rare donor transplants if manufacturing becomes cheaper, including potential off‑the‑shelf or in‑body versions.