Scientists have discovered a 33-year-old woman, diagnosed with HIV at age 19 and lupus at 27, who has developed powerful antibodies that may have controlled her virus. These findings could help with HIV vaccine development as these broadly neutralizing antibodies (BNAs) block the receptors HIV uses to latch onto human cells before infecting them. About one in five people with HIV will eventually produce BNAs but will largely do so too late: after the viral population has mutated enough to evade the antibodies’ effects. Past research has suggested that HIV BNAs come from a pool of immune cells that canalso lead to autoimmune disorders such as lupus. With an eye on vaccine development, the researchers hope that their study of this woman will help expand knowledge of the multiple ways that BNAs can develop. The study does not prove BNAs controlled the woman’s virus, nor does it suggest that those with lupus have immunity to HIV or a better prognosis than those without lupus.