Finally, after years of development, GeoVax Inc.'s HIV vaccine is ready for human clinical trials.

In animal testing using rhesus monkeys, the vaccine was able to protect the animals from contracting HIV for more than 3 and a half years and the developers are hopeful it would provide the same protection to humans.

The vaccine for humans uses a two-part strategy -- it gives patients two shots of a DNA vaccine that primes the immune system to recognize HIV, and two doses of subsequent booster vaccine to enhance the body's immune response. The doses are given several weeks apart.

The vaccine works by producing some of the proteins expressed by HIV in order to induce the immune system to respond should the body later be exposed to HIV. It does not contain the "live" or complete virus, so it could not cause the onset of HIV, researchers say.

According to the researchers, the vaccine is different from other HIV vaccines being developed in that the proteins they used are very similar to those naturally found in the AIDS virus, and are therefore more likely to be invoke a more effective immune response to the actual AIDS virus proteins.

GeoVAx has been granted by the FDA the go signal to proceed with human clinical trials back in March.

Read the report from the Atlanta Business Chronicle.