HIV/AIDS

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For a long time it has been known that some people never become sick after contracting HIV. Researchers have been looking for clues as to why for as long. With the genome sequencing work there have been leads here and there. Recently there has been another one.

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Now, an international team of researchers, led by specialists in Boston, has cracked these HIV survivors’ genetic code, sifting through almost 1.4 million pieces of DNA to discover five amino acids that separate the small cadre of controllers from the vast majority who must take medication or face death.

It also reflects the tenacity of scientists who were once dismissed with skepticism and of patients who were part of the AIDS epidemic but were not touched in the same way as friends and relatives dying all around them.

The discovery was reported on the website of the journal Science. The researchers said the differences they found cause small changes on the surface of HIV-infected cells, which could alter the immune system’s response to the virus.

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Type: Discussion • Score: 3 • Views: 2,237 • Replies: 10

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@littlek,

got a link?

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@littlek,

Interesting. Thanks for posting this, littlek.

Here's the Abstract

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@JPB,

tks you got a link to conclusions? the abstract syas this ", we performed genome-wide association analysis in a multiethnic cohort of HIV-1 controllers and progressors"

is it ethnic?

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@littlek,

Interesting stuff. I would be interested in knowing exactly what percentage of people who contract HIV do not go on to develop AIDS.

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@ABE5177,

There's a link to the full article on the side of the abstract page. It's available only to subscribers. Maybe l'k's original article had more info beyond what she posted, but the abstract doesn't. I would imagine that if there was a significant difference in ethnic-specificity then it would have been 1) in the abstract, and 2) in the headline. The abstract doesn't mention that they looked for ethnicity as a factor, but it's possible they had that in the model.

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@spidergal,

That's hard to say, spidergal, because the treatments continue to improve. For many people, HIV is now considered a chronic illness along the lines of diabetes and, with proper treatment, they can live long lives without succumbing to AIDS.

Here's some data on those who go untreated...

Quote:

Studies of people who don’t receive treatment for HIV show that about half of HIV-infected people progress to AIDS within 10 years of being infected. Three out of four HIV-infected people progress to AIDS within 15 years of infection.

Children who are born with HIV and people who got HIV through a blood transfusion tend to get sick more quickly.

The stages of HIV tend to follow the pattern highlighted below, although actual times vary a great deal from one person to another:

Time After Infection

Stage
3 to 6 months HIV spreads within the body and becomes detectable when an HIV test is done.
1 to 10 years A person is HIV, but healthy.
3 to 10 years Minor symptoms may appear.
8 to 12 years Symptoms of HIV or AIDS begin to appear.

Source

Edit: I don't know when those time-tables were created but HIV detectability via HIV testing is down to days, not months.

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@JPB,

Thanks JPB. Will look up the stuff you've posted.

I was very interested in AIDS/HIV as a zoology major. Sadly don't have the time these days to read up much on it. This should get me hooked again!

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Oops, meant to post the link. It said around 1 in 300 cases don't progress typical AIDS complications and to untimely death.

http://www.boston.com/news/health/articles/2010/11/05/gene_research_finds_clues_to_aids_survival/?p1=Upbox_links

HIV/AIDS

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