Possible cure for HIV infection discovered

IN a breakthrough that could potentially lead to a cure for HIV infection, scientists have discovered a way to remove the virus from infected cells, a study released today said.

Aids discoverer finds new hope of cure after trials of vaccine

The scientist who discovered the Aids virus more than 20 years ago said he has developed a potential vaccine against the disease that has killed 25 million people around the globe.

Professor Robert Gallo, in 1984, along with the French scientist, Luc Montagnier, the first to identify that HIV caused Aids, said the latest discovery had made him more optimistic that the disease could be beaten than he had felt for a decade.

Almost 40 million people are living with HIV, most in sub-Saharan Africa, and four million more are infected each year. A vaccine that would halt its spread is the holy grail for researchers, but despite 20 years of effort and the expenditure of millions of dollars, all attempts to do so have so far failed.

Professor Gallo, director of the Institute for Human Virology at the University of Maryland, said his team had created antibodies that worked against different HIV strains, essential if a vaccine is to provide effective protection but which has defied previous attempts. The candidate vaccine had been tested successfully in four monkeys, selected because of their similarity to man, and tests are now being done on a further 12 monkeys. If those are successful, the next stage would be to test the vaccine in humans, he said.

“Yes, we are at a preliminary stage, but if 10 years ago I had known I could make antibodies that would neutralise a wide range of variants of HIV, I would have been celebratory. People thought this was pretty much impossible. It’s a serious clinical advance; we have been quietly doing it. I do not know what the outcome of the latest trial [on the 12 monkeys] will be but my guess is we will move to phase 1 clinical trials [in humans] in a year’s time.”

He added: “Before there was no pathway. Now there is some light.”

Developing a vaccine against Aids is regarded as one the most difficult challenges facing medicine and some scientists believe it is impossible. The virus mutates rapidly, it integrates itself into the patient’s genetic material and it infects the very cells used by the immune system to defend the body against attack.

Professor Gallo said the approach taken by his team was to modify the protective envelope that surrounds the virus, opening a site and making antibodies to it that prevented entry of the virus into the body’s cells. But the first challenge the researchers face is that the antibodies do not last longer than three months, meaning a booster dose of vaccine would be needed three to four times a year. “If we can [overcome this] we will be happy bordering on excited,” he said.

There are 15 major strains of HIV, but mixing and re-combining has produced a total of about 20. The strain that dominates in Africa is A and in the US and Europe it is B. But among five people infected with the B strain of the virus only one would be protected by a B vaccine, because of variants in the strains.

Professor Gallo said: “I feel personally more optimistic but I don’t want to look Pollyanna-ish. HIV has always dealt surprises. I see an avenue. But I don’t know if there is a bend ahead and a truck round the corner blocking the way.”

Thomas Hanke, a specialist on HIV vaccines at the human immunology unit of Oxford University, said: “There have been lots of claims for vaccines that can neutralise different strains but a vaccine that would be useful hasn’t been constructed yet. Professor Gallo’s success is a good reason to be positive, but it is also a good reason not to be over-excited.”

Researchers make strategic breakthrough in controlling AIDS virus

A team of researchers from the Universite de Montreal and the Centre hospitalier de l’Universite de Montreal (CHUM) say they have made a breakthrough in fighting the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). They have identified a defect in the immune response to HIV and found a way to correct the flaw.

AIDS researcher proposes method to extinguish HIV epidemic

Expanding free access to drug therapies for everyone infected with HIV could eventually stop the spread of the virus, says a leading Vancouver AIDS researcher.

Breakthrough shortens the window of HIV detection

Testing for HIV and Hepatitis C (HCV) has come a long way over the years – but there is still a mortally dangerous shortcoming in the technology that detects whether a person is infected.

Indian research centre claims drug to cure HIV

A Nanded-based research centre has claimed that it has transformed at least 200 cases of HIV positive to HIV negative in the last three years using a patented drug ‘HIV-SJ’.

Yoghurt bacteria modified to produce HIV blocking drug

‘Friendly bacteria’ found in yoghurt has been genetically modified by a team of US researchers headed by an Indian American to produce a drug that blocks HIV infection.

Aids virus might be weakening

The virus which causes Aids may be getting less powerful, researchers say.

New treatment gives hope to cancer sufferers

The results of an international clinical trial, which included more than 2,000 Australian liver and bowel cancer patients, indicate that a radical new approach to treating the disease has a much higher success rate than conventional therapy.

UF scientist finds unexpected link between cat and human AIDS viruses

A University of Florida researcher has discovered an unexpected link between the viruses that cause feline and human AIDS: Cats vaccinated with an experimental strain of the human AIDS virus appear to be at least as well-protected against the feline version of the disease as those immunized with the vaccine currently used by veterinarians.

Harmless virus may hold cure to HIV

Scientists have found that a simple, harmless virus might hold the key to the more effective and efficient development of HIV and anti-viral drugs, claims a study published in the online version of the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

Crocodiles’ anti-bodies able to overcome HIV virus

Scientists in Australia’s tropical north are collecting blood from crocodiles in the hope of developing a powerful antibiotic for humans, after tests showed that the reptile’s immune system kills the HIV virus.

Experimental AIDS Therapy Offers Hope of Eventual Cure

U.S. scientists have tested a new approach to AIDS therapy that raises hope of an eventual cure of the disease. Doctors have found an old drug used for another condition can dramatically decrease the levels of the AIDS virus in the body.

Nigerian Firm Makes Breakthrough in HIV Drug

An indigenous pharmaceutical company, Fidson Healthcare Limited, has made a breakthrough in the production of anti-retroviral drug for the management of Human Immuno-Deficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immuned Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

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