The Rockefeller University

This is a first-in-human, placebo-controlled, single dose, dose-escalation phase 1 study to evaluate the safety, pharmacokinetics and antiviral activity of a highly potent neutralizing anti-HBV monoclonal antibody (mAb), HepB mAb19, which targets the S-protein in individuals with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) on nucleos(t)ide analog therapy (NRTI).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Aug 2023

open study

Staphylococcus aureus (SA) is a leading cause of morbidity mortality and as a result it is responsible for a marked economic burden on today's health care system. Infections with SA that are resistant to Methicillin antibiotic (MRSA) are very common and are a major part of this burden. 30% of the population are colonized with S. aureus so at least theoretically their immune system is constantly exposed to the bacteria and expected to induce protective immunity. However at the same time 30% of the population experiencing an infection with S. aureus will be afflicted with recurrent infections with this bacterium and despite previous exposure. Developing a vaccine would be an ideal solution for prevention of these infections. However despite intensive study in the last 3 decades a successful vaccine against S.aureus is still unavailable. For developing and designing an efficient vaccine a better understanding of the immune response to S. aureus is needed..For many yearsthe concept was that B cell responses and antibody production are enough for protection against S.aureus. In recent years direct evidence from KO mice as well as evidence from humans with primary immune deficiency demonstrates that CD4 Th1 and Th17 immune responses are necessary for protection from S. aureus. Nevertheless our recent results demonstrate that the Th1 and Th17 response to the various S. aureus strains varied extensively in response to in-vitro stimulation. Further wide variability was also inspected in IgG expression by proliferating B cells in response to the different strains. We could show that mobile genetic elements carried by phages are responsible for a significant portion of this immune response variability. These findings are bringing up the possibility that the strain specificity is a new factor that might need to be taken into account when we are evaluating protection. At this time point what is not known/understood and what we want to clarify in the current study is:   (i) Whether previous exposure to various strains results in different level of protective memory. (ii) How immune memory induced by exposure to one strain affect the ability to respond to other strains of S. aureus.

Type: Observational

open study

Powassan virus (POWV) is a virus spread by the same tick that spreads Lyme disease. When humans are bitten by an infected tick they can develop severe disease including encephalitis and POWV infection can be fatal. There is currently no specific treatment available. Ticks carrying the virus are found in several regions of the United States including the upper Midwest and the Northeast. There is concern that cases are increasing and POWV is emerging as a significant public health threat.   Upon infection with germs such as bacteria and viruses the human body mounts a protective response including the production of special proteins called antibodies that block the germs and protect against similar infections in the future. Antibodies are made by special cells in the blood called B cells which have been shown to play important roles in protection from a number of viruses.  B cells can be isolated from blood and analyzed to identify those that make the protective antibody for a specific virus. The genes that code for the protective antibody can be cloned and antibodies can be made outside the body. After they are purified the antibodies are further tested for their ability to bind to and block the virus's ability to infect cells. This has been a successful strategy to obtain HIV blocking antibodies which are being tested in clinical trials and have been found to be safe and to have significant activity against HIV. We propose to take a similar approach to isolate B cells and make antibodies that can block POWV. The antibodies could be useful for POWV treatment or the development of tests  to aid diagnosis and may inform the design of vaccines against this emerging virus.  

Type: Observational

open study