A peptide-based nanofibrous hydrogel as a promising DNA nanovector for optimizing the efficacy of HIV vaccine.

This report shows that a nanovector composed of peptide-based nanofibrous hydrogel can condense DNA to result in strong immune responses against HIV. This nanovector can strongly activate both humoral and cellular immune responses to a balanced level rarely reported in previous studies, which is crucial for HIV prevention and therapy. In addition, this nanovector shows good biosafety in vitro and in vivo. Detailed characterizations show that the nanofibrous structure of the hydrogel is critical for the dramatically improved immune responses compared to existing materials. This peptide-based nanofibrous hydrogel shows great potential for efficacious HIV DNA vaccines and can be potentially used for delivering other vaccines and drugs.