HIV-AIDS AWARENESS

A new collection of compounds, called "bryologs" -- derived from a tiny marine organism -- activate hidden reservoirs of the virus that currently make the disease nearly impossible to eradicate. Stanford chemists have synthesized a  compound that flushes out latent HIV.  (Credit: © michaeljung / Fotolia) Thanks to antiretrovirals, an AIDS diagnosis hasn't been a death sentence for ...

Using highly potent antibodies isolated from HIV-positive people, researchers have recently begun to identify ways to broadly neutralize the many possible subtypes of HIV. Now, a team led by biologists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has built upon one of these naturally occurring antibodies to create a stronger version they believe is a better candidate for clinical ...

Image via Wikipedia Researchers at Oregon Health &Science University may have uncovered a new weapon for combating HIV as it is passed from mother to newborn child. The research, which was led by researchers at OHSU's Oregon National Primate Research Center, will be published in the October 3rd online edition of the journal Nature Medicine. "Mother-to-infant transmission of HIV is a ...

Image via Wikipedia Vitamin A and beta-carotene supplements are unsafe for HIV-positive women who breastfeed because they may boost the excretion of HIV in breast milk---thereby increasing the chances of transmitting the infection to the child, a pair of new studies suggest. Epidemiologist Eduardo Villamor of the University of Michigan School of Public Health says transmission of HIV through ...

Researchers at the University of Minnesota Academic Health Center have identified two drugs that, when combined, may serve as an effective treatment for HIV. The two drugs, decitabine and gemcitabine – both FDA approved and currently used in pre-cancer and cancer therapy – were found to eliminate HIV infection in the mouse model by causing the virus to mutate itself to death – an outcome ...

Microfluidic device uses antibodies to “capture” white blood cells called T cells affected by HIV UC Davis biomedical engineer Prof. Alexander Revzin has developed a "lab on a chip" device for HIV testing. Revzin's microfluidic device uses antibodies to "capture" white blood cells called T cells that are affected by HIV. In addition to physically binding these cells the test detects the types ...

Limited success in modelling the behaviour of the complex, unusual and unpredictable HIV virus has slowed efforts to develop an effective vaccine to prevent AIDS. A new improved modelling system, developed by Chinese researchers, which attempts to incorporate more of the virus' random behavioural dynamics, suggests that a particular type of T cell could be useful in the development of an AIDS ...

Women are susceptible to HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, but scientists have been puzzled as to how it finds its way into the female reproductive tract. One theory has been that trauma, such as a little tear during intercourse, causes HIV to cross epithelial cells -- the protective barrier that keeps out infection. There is also the suggestion an unknown mechanism is at work. For the first ...

Researchers have worked on this for 20 years UK experts at the Imperial College London (ICL) have recently made a significant breakthrough in HIV research, after more than 20 years of research. The achievement could have considerable implications on approaching HIV and AIDS patients, and could result in groundbreaking, new therapies for the condition, healthcare experts say. Details of the ...