Kali Crofts Receives HVTN Scientific Pilot Award

Kali Crofts, PhD, postdoctoral associate in the laboratory of Guido Ferrari, MD, was awarded an HIV Vaccine Trial Network (HVTN) Scientific Pilot Award for her project titled, "Evaluating the Capacity of Vaccine-Elicited Polyclonal Antibody Responses to Mediate Phagocytosis of HIV-Infected Cells."

The project aims to evaluate whether HIV vaccination can elicit antibodies that direct monocytes to recognize and engulf HIV-infected cells. Usng a newly developed flow cytometry and imaging-based platform, Dr. Crofts will analyze samples from the HVTN 137 HIV vaccine clinical trial to assess vaccine-induced antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis (ADCP) against HIV-infected target cells. Findings from this study will help determine whether conventional bead-based assays accurately reflect antibody activity against HIV-infected cells and inform future HIV vaccine evaluation strategies.