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Two University of Oklahoma scientists are starting research that they hope will someday lead to the development of a vaccine(疫苗)to fight against the HIV Virus, which causes AIDS．
The research, to be carried out by Mark Lang, an assistant professor at the OU Health Sciences Center, and microbiologist John West, will examine the basic aspects of the immune system, rather than the complex aspects of the virus．
They theorize that if a key function of the body's immune system can be found exactly, it could be the first step toward developing a vaccine．
“To develop a new vaccine, we realzed we first have to study and understand the immune system,”Lang said．
Lang said their work will focus on researching the basic antibody responses from Natural Killer－like T－cells．A potential vaccine would contain NKT cells and would improve the immune system's antibodies, which fight outside invaders such as HIV by preventing them from entering cells or giving the immune system enough of a boost to kill them．
NKT cells, which have been a part of research into cancer and other diseases, have not previously been the focus of HIV research, Lang said．
The research will last 18 months, with tests being performed on mice．The Oklahoma Center is giving ＄300,000 toward the research, and if the research proves promising, Lang and West will apply to the National Institutes of Health for more funding．
“If we are successful, we will have made an important contribution to the field, but we will still be several steps away from an effective vaccine,”Lang said．
Lang said that in a best –case scenario(最好的情况)their research could lead to a vaccine ready for use in about four years．
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