Potential AIDS cure discovered

[PhiGam]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122602394113507555.html

The startling case of an AIDS patient who underwent a bone marrow transplant to treat leukemia is stirring new hope that gene-therapy strategies on the far edges of AIDS research might someday cure the disease.

The patient, a 42-year-old American living in Berlin, is still recovering from his leukemia therapy, but he appears to have won his battle with AIDS. Doctors have not been able to detect the virus in his blood for more than 600 days, despite his having ceased all conventional AIDS medication. Normally when a patient stops taking AIDS drugs, the virus stampedes through the body within weeks, or days.

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by PhiGam

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122602394113507555.html

That was really interesting. It's a little disappointing that the treatment, when given for leukemia, kills 30% of its patients, but it is a new avenue of hope.

I also wonder why there's no widespread promotion of testing to see if people have the mutation that prevents infection. And it's interesting to wonder why, as uncommon as it is, why it's more common in Northern Europeans. What was the evolutionary issue?

[kafromTN]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

That was really interesting. It's a little disappointing that the treatment, when given for leukemia, kills 30% of its patients, but it is a new avenue of hope.

I also wonder why there's no widespread promotion of testing to see if people have the mutation that prevents infection. And it's interesting to wonder why, as uncommon as it is, why it's more common in Northern Europeans. What was the evolutionary issue?

From what I read a while ago, and unable to find anything good on it at this time, it has to do with the manner the black death or one of the plagues that afflicted Europe. Something to do with the manner in which the plagues attacked the human body and that CCR5 molecule is what it attached to [similar to HIV] to attack the cells.

This isn't real clear, sorry, started drinking early today.

[RU OX Alum]

Originally Posted by UGAalum94

That was really interesting. It's a little disappointing that the treatment, when given for leukemia, kills 30% of its patients, but it is a new avenue of hope.

I also wonder why there's no widespread promotion of testing to see if people have the mutation that prevents infection. And it's interesting to wonder why, as uncommon as it is, why it's more common in Northern Europeans. What was the evolutionary issue?

I believe it was the plauge, at least based on my reading for health class in college. It was the plauge that was the ancestor of the modern day AIDS virus, and since that went through Europe, the decendents of those who survived are probably more likely to not get AIDS or to be better able at not dying from it.

[LightBulb]

Originally Posted by RU OX Alum

It was the plauge that was the ancestor of the modern day AIDS virus, and since that went through Europe, the decendents of those who survived are probably more likely to not get AIDS or to be better able at not dying from it.

Good to know. I had thought that the Plague was a bacterial disease, not a virus.

In response to the OP: awesome! That's really exciting.

[RU OX Alum]

Originally Posted by LightBulb

Good to know. I had thought that the Plague was a bacterial disease, not a virus.

In response to the OP: awesome! That's really exciting.

It was probably both, I know that pneumonia is, or can be. And yeah that's awesome if they really have a cure.