Revisiting the Correlate of Reduced HIV Infection Risk in the Rv144 Vaccine Trial

The RV144 vaccine trial is the only clinical study to have shown a modest but statistically significant decrease in HIV infection risk. RV144 and the subsequent studies identifying the level of V1V2-specific antibodies as a correlate of reduced infection risk are still controversial despite many papers supporting and expanding the initial study. We address these controversies and summarize active-immunization and passive-immunization experiments in nonhuman primates that support the initial finding.