Citation

Liposomes known as Army Liposome Formulation (ALF), which are used as a potent vaccine adjuvant formulation, have a lipid bilayer bulk composed of phospholipids, usually dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine and dimyristoyl phosphatidylglycerol, in which the hydrocarbon chains have a melting temperature in water of 23C. Cholesterol is present in the bilayer as a stabilizer, and monophosphoryl lipid A (MPLA) as an immunostimulator. Using synthetic congeners of MPLA we demonstrate that with ALF liposomes containing a cholesterol-binding saponin as an additional adjuvant, differences in the number and placement of 14-carbon hydrocarbon chains attached to the diglucosamine phosphate headgroup of the MPLA do not significantly impact the magnitude of the immune response to an HIV-1 envelope protein.