(for info from one of vaccine researchers click here.

There are various methods tested which may stop HIV. Several drugs
are known which significantly reduce chance of infecting new cells
by the viruse (reverse trascriptase inhibitors), or chance of
producing infectious ("mature") viruses (protease inhibitors).
Therapy by their combination, known as HAART (highly active anti-
-retroviral therapy) Treatment, results in losing HIV from blood
usually down to level it cannot be detected. But these drugs are
highly toxic, and the therapy does not warrant complete curing.
(in fact, it is not known yet if it can cure the HIV infection)
Reverse transcriptase inhibitors can significantly reduce chance
of infection if used after contact with HIV. Because of their high
toxicity they are recommended in high or medium risk cases only
(example: child is born by HIV-positive mother).
For some synthetic info about successes and problems click here.

From latest AIDS Treatment News (#300):
Actually the following methods are tried:
- T-20 (it is synthetic 36-amino-acid identical to part of HIV),
 it remains outside cells and blocks HIV from entering them;
- combination of two proteins from HIV "envelope" used as
 vaccine to activate immune response + HAART to destroy viruses;

Ultrasensitive HIV-1 detection: 50 copies/milliliter (test from
Roche Molecular Systems), previously available was 400 copies/ml.

Interesting article: Geneva Medical Report Now on Web
 (not financed by pharmaceutical companies)

Back issues of AIDS Treatment News are available here.

Some synthetic info about successes and problems:

Although incomplete, considerable immune system recovery occurs
as result of antiretroviral therapy (Immune System Recovery).

HIV-1 hides from retroviral therapy: in latent CD4+ T cells with
integrated provirus, in macrophages, and in follicular dendritic
cells holding infectious HIV-1 on their surfaces for indeterminate
length of time; and in central nervous system (HIV reservoirs).

Because of this efforts are done to combine antiretroviral therapy
with activation of latently infected CD4+ T cells while infectious
viruses released from them would be unable to infect new cells
(HIV/AIDS in 1988--Gaining the Upper Hand?, ref15).
Discovered chemokine receptors which can serve as coreceptors
for HIV entry into CD4+ cells (possibility to hinder access
of HIV to target cells; ref21 to 27).
But the main problem is: there are 30 million people with HIV
and most of them cannot use these therapies... so development
and worldwide use of safe and efficient vaccine is necessary.

Some vaccine is tried (VaxGen - Phase 3 Trials); the vaccine
contains gp120 protein (part of HIV's envelope), plus some
"additional molecular component" believed to enhance protection).
None of previous vaccines has advanced to so wide trials.
National Institute of Health has another vaccine in phase 2
trials, their use genetic material of HIV + canarypox viruse
as primary vaccination to evoke T cell cytolitic response,
followed by a different vaccine to elicin an antibody response.