Characterization of the antibody response elicited by HIV-1 Env glycomutants in rabbits

HIV-1 N-glycans are known to shield underlying epitopes towards the protective antibody repertoire. We previously described HIV-1 acute infection Env glycomutants designed from 3D-model in which the removal of clustered N-glycans did not disturb the envelope antigenicity, but increased the neutralization sensitivity. The potential of such immunogens to elicit neutralizing responses was estimated after rabbit immunizations with a DNA/protein protocol. Maturation of the Env-specific antibody response was confirmed by a change in avidity and conformational dependence. For one immunogen, the neutralizing response was increased with a higher breadth compared to the Wild-Type. Our data suggest that Env selective deglycosylation based on 3D data may represent a valuable strategy to improve elicitation of neutralizing antibodies.