The US National Cancer Institute has published a report from its National Institutes of Health department which has revealed how HIV changes shape after binding to the immune system. For the first time, advanced imaging techniques have given scientists the ability to visualize the structure of the virus particles, which is a crucial piece of knowledge.
The results of the study, which were released on July 30, 2008, can be read in its entirety at www.nih.gov. The work has been the subject of dedicated efforts for several years because of its potential importance in understanding mechanisms of viral entry into immune system cells. The advanced imaging techniques used in the study have the potential to advance the understanding of the complete structure of the viral spike and it’s hoped it will also reveal other vulnerable targets.
HIV has become a global epidemic, with an estimated 37.2 million adults and 2.7 million children currently living with AIDS. More than 70 percent live in Sub-Saharan Africe with an additional 15 percent living in Asia. HIV-AIDS Statistics, NIAID Fact Sheet: NIAID) The virus has been sweeping the world for the past two decades, killing millions of people. AIDS damages the immune system, with the time period varying, depending on access to AIDS drugs, nutrition, the presence of other medical conditions, and stress. In the absence of treatment, the average time between HIV infection and progression to AIDS is around ten years.
The scientists used imaging technique to produce three-dimensional renderings, freezing the virus and taking pictures of it from different angles. High-resolution images enabled them to interpret the three-dimensional pictures. Most of the antibodies that the body produces to fight HIV are ineffective, but some antibodies are produced that can neutralize HIV and a better understanding of the process was realized. It is hoped that the emerging technologies will also help scientists to better understand what distinguishes cancer cells from normal cells.
The World Health Organization says of AIDS case surveillance that figures give a general idea of the increase of AIDS in a population, but do not reflect the actual prevalence of AIDS disease so much as the accuracy of detection, diagnosis and reporting of the disease syndrome. The proportion of AIDS cases reported varies from less than 10% in some countries to almost 90% in others.
The research team is continuing to conduct studies to better comprehend how HIV often seems to escape neutralization. For more information on the research, please go to http://ccr.cancer.gov/staff/staff.ASP?profileid=5614 and http://electron.nci.nih.gov. These impressive studies give the public an assurance that in the future, some of the world’s most destructive medical conditions will belong to the past.
