HIV-1 sickens some individuals
rapidly, however, it has difficulty sickening others. There may be a genetic
reason for this, if so it could be decoded and open many new treatment options
for those effected. University of Minnesota researchers have been recently
studying this issue and published work in PLOSGenetics on uncovering at least a small piece of this ongoing puzzle. This
gives the science field hope for future discovers.
HIV-1
invades immune systems called T lymphocytes and attacks molecular systems,
eventually leading to the death of the host cell. This leaves the affected
person with a destroyed immune system that is useless when it comes to fighting
off diseases. T lymphocytes are a part of the APOBEC3s anti-body proteins that
can stop HIV-1’s ability to replicate. HIV-1 has a Vif protein to counteract
our body’s T lymphocytes defense. This make the disease more deadly and much
more complicated to fight.
Researchers
have found that HIV-1 causes an increase in the production of APOBEC3s and
APOBEC3H proteins. This gives us a hint that these two proteins are key in
fighting HIV-1. Through separation of function mutagens, researchers found that
some people have different levels of these proteins compared to others. Stable
versions of these proteins were able to fight off HIV-1 virus with weak Vif,
however, it could not fight off HIV-1 viruses with weak Vif. This shows that
the virus has not fully evolved and perfected itself in attacking humans. Finding
the link between APOBEC3s and APOBEC3H proteins in relation to fighting Vif can
open doors for new medication and maybe even lead to a cure in the future.
Original Article: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141120141750.htm
Related Article: http://www.retrovirology.com/content/9/1/35
This research is promising and the fact the a cure could be in the near future is exciting. These findings offer a lot of hope to people living with HIV and could prevent more cases in the future.
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