Man cured of HIV

[syaoranvee]

Doctors who carried out a stem cell transplant on an HIV-infected man with leukaemia in 2007 say they now believe the man to have been cured of HIV infection as a result of the treatment, which introduced stem cells which happened to be resistant to HIV infection.

The man received bone marrow from a donor who had natural resistance to HIV infection; this was due to a genetic profile which led to the CCR5 co-receptor being absent from his cells. The most common variety of HIV uses CCR5 as its ‘docking station’, attaching to it in order to enter and infect CD4 cells, and people with this mutation are almost completely protected against infection.

The case was first reported at the 2008 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Boston, and Berlin doctors subsequently published a detailed case history in the New England Journal of Medicine in February 2009.

They have now published a follow-up report in the journal Blood, arguing that based on the results of extensive tests, “It is reasonable to conclude that cure of HIV infection has been achieved in this patient.”

Full story can be found here: www.aidsmap.com/Stem-cell-transplant-has-cured-HIV-infection-in-Berlin-patient-say-doctors/page/1577949/

[Shane for Wax]

This should go in science and technology for better exposure. I heard of this. Pretty epic.

[Mira]

I'll be celebrating when it's repeated.

[RavynousHunter]

A small step is better than no step at all.

[Vene]

Dec 22, 2010 0:55:46 GMT -5 Mira said:

I'll be celebrating when it's repeated.

It won't be. This is a bone marrow transplant, it's more dangerous than AIDS is. The only reason this was done was because the guy had both leukemia and AIDS so they used marrow that would grow CD4 cells that are immune to HIV. They killed all the infected cells, did the transplant, and now they found that he is no longer infected. This will NOT be done for the typical patient. It is way too risky. It's also way beyond the capabilities for African countries who have the biggest problem with AIDS.

[syaoranvee]

Dec 22, 2010 23:39:20 GMT -5 Vene said:

Dec 22, 2010 0:55:46 GMT -5 Mira said:

I'll be celebrating when it's repeated.

It won't be. This is a bone marrow transplant, it's more dangerous than AIDS is. The only reason this was done was because the guy had both leukemia and AIDS so they used marrow that would grow CD4 cells that are immune to HIV. They killed all the infected cells, did the transplant, and now they found that he is no longer infected. This will NOT be done for the typical patient. It is way too risky. It's also way beyond the capabilities for African countries who have the biggest problem with AIDS.

Best hope this isn't the only way then. Unless you can take the HIV resistant stem cells and turn them into a vaccine somehow. Even then, the stem cells in question are only in 1% of the population.

[Napoleon the Clown]

The bitch of it is, HIV mutates so damn fast that there will be a strain (at minimum) that this misses for. And then it will diverge into other strains. And so on. Gotta love viruses that mutate so damn fast. Especially when they have such profound effects on people.

[Yla]

It's essentially a format c: and reinstall of the complete immune system. Not quite a routine treatment. But it's a milestone.

[Vene]

Dec 23, 2010 2:41:29 GMT -5 Napoleon the Clown said:

The bitch of it is, HIV mutates so damn fast that there will be a strain (at minimum) that this misses for. And then it will diverge into other strains. And so on. Gotta love viruses that mutate so damn fast. Especially when they have such profound effects on people.

This is different than typical HIV mutation. This is a case where the receptor HIV uses the enter the cell is borked. If HIV can't even get a hold on a host, it can't mutate enough to infect. But, this cannot be used a vaccine. Vaccines work by giving your immune system a target so that when it is seen again it will respond faster and stop the infection before it can do any damage. The mutations HIV undergoes are to avoid detection by the immune system, this kind of thing is much more difficult. He has been cured of AIDS, he cannot get AIDS and has joined a very small minority who can't get it.

Now, if this mutation was widespread in humans (either through gene therapy or implantation or whatever), then HIV will probably mutate in such a way to use the mutated receptor or will use a different receptor. But that's because there will be more selection pressure, whereas if a strain exists that can use the mutated receptor, it's going to be in a host that doesn't have the mutated receptor and the strain will die. And the use of a different receptor is inefficient in comparison so they will be out-competed and die.

[Shane for Wax]

So HIV proves evolution then.

[Napoleon the Clown]

There are a shitton of microbes that prove evolution. The problem is, lots of evolution-deniers don't accept it because they aren't "new species". They seem to be unaware that the current definition of species sucks horribly, thanks to, as an example, ring species.

[Shane for Wax]

I seee.