Using recent advances, however, scientists have now identified highly conserved regions of this variable virus, determined their molecular structure, and begun designing next-generation vaccine candidates to elicit antibodies that target these regions to prevent HIV infection. But HIV vaccine development, like that for several other diseases, is still impeded by the limitations of what animal models can tell us about how to elicit the necessary immune responses in humans.
HIV大概是最大的挑战，因为这种病毒利用其多种多样的遗传变异而不被免疫系统所识别。但是，如今科学家已可以利用最新的进步识别多变病毒的高度保守区（conserved region）、确定它们的分子结构，并开始设计下一代候选疫苗以触发针对这些区域、防止HIV传染的抗体。但与其他几种疾病的疫苗一样，HIV疫苗的开发仍受制于动物模型对如何触发必须的人类免疫反应的预测力的局限性。