An advisory panel to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently decided that although the vaccine made by the Immune Response Corporation (IRC) holds limited promise, it is safe enough to use in a three-year study involving more than 3,002 participants. The vaccine--the brainchild of Jonas Salk, the developer of the polio vaccine--is a whole, killed version of HIV minus its surface protein. The IRC scientists and researchers told the panel how the vaccine had boosted the immune system and decreased HIV levels of patients in small- scale studies. Many panel members, however, were skeptical. "My instincts tell me it will not show efficacy," said virologist Stanley Lemon of the University of North Carolina. The committee finally approved the trial because the vaccine does not appear to produce serious side effects.

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