Summary: The War Against HIV

Superior Essays
The war against HIV …. The presence of HIV was tracked back to 1920 in Africa. There have been numerous attempts to stop HIV contraction through precautionary measures and detection and prevent progression once HIV has infected. The development of an effective process to fight the infection is crucial to sustain the disease and prevent spread, especially in poor and populated countries. But what if infection of HIV could be obstructed all together? Recent studies have explored the effect of seminal plasma and other biologics on HIV-1. Could the anti-viral components of seminal plasma and other biologics be utilized as agent against HIV and vaccine development?
HIV is a retrovirus that infects the CD4 T-cells of the immune system. The cell surface
…show more content…
Breastmilk that has not been infected with HIV-1 holds antiviral components. Many fluids and their components have anti-microbial and anti-viral effects. One study shows the anti-HIV-1 effects of Tenasin C (TNC) found in breast milk and seminal fluids. TNC has been previously recognized for its fetal development and healing purposes. This study showed that concentrated TNC did neutralize HIV-1 at low pH’s though the natural concentrations in the body were not sufficient in neutralization. The interaction that occurs pertains to the interaction of components in the mucosal fluids with the envelope protein of HIV-1. TNC binds to the chemokine co-receptor blocking the ability of the virus to infect. The study concludes that since the natural concentrations of TNC are not adequate in the complete neutralization of HIV-1, an application of recombinant TNC in the genital tract or through oral administration would provide the anti-HIV-1 actions necessary for successful neutralization. The study suggests continued research on the activity of TNC for further understanding and utilization. …show more content…
This study assayed whole seminal plasma for anti-HIV-1 activity. This study observed three major questions; to determine if seminal plasma contained the cationic polypeptides thought to be responsible for the anti-HIV-1 action, to determine if these cationic polypeptides resemble any components of vaginal fluids, and finally to determine if these cationic polypeptides were in fact responsible for the anti-HIV-1 action. The researchers isolated each cationic component and tested each against HIV-1. It was concluded that cationic polypeptide SG-1 carries most anti-HIV-1 activity. The report also mentioned the relationship between incubation an anti-HIV-1 activity. If the protein was incubated for longer amounts of time, it’s anti-HIV-1 activity was reduced. Incubation degrades the protein structure at the functional level, in turn decreasing functionality and anti-viral effects. Also, proteins with a greater cationic charge exhibited higher rates of anti-viral activity signifying that charge is a critical factor in fighting HIV. This study demonstrated important findings in the fight against HIV-1. Recognition of the importance of the cationic charge on the anti-HIV peptides provides a pathway for future studies. Researchers hope to further identify the mechanism of action of the cationic polypeptides in order to replicate their activity and step forward into fighting

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    During the first stage of HIV, the infected person may have no symptoms or flu like symptoms (CDC, 2015). There is no telling when HIV has advanced into its deadliest stage; one is then at a very high risk of developing Acquired Immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). In the 1980’s HIV was thought to be originated in the USA from this group of gay men (avert.org, 2014). However, scientist have identified that HIV is actually a virus very similar to that found in chimpanzees’ called SIV (CDC, 2015).…

    • 902 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    HIV is a virus transmitted through contact with infected bodily fluids. The virus weakens the body’s defenses against other infections (Merck Manual, 2015). A large number of infected people remain feeling “well” for many years, but if they do not seek treatment their condition will worse and eventually have their immune system be ineffective (Merck Manual, 2015). Although no actual cure exists, some treatments are available. According to the Manual, “HIV drugs…can stop HIV from reproducing, strengthen the immune system, and thus make people less susceptible to infection, but the drugs cannot, with rare exceptions, eliminate HIV” (Merck Manual, 2015).…

    • 821 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    There is no clear predetermined linkage between a specific subtype and a unique mode of transmission. Therefore, different subtypes could have been influenced by a combination of different genetic, demographic, economic and social factors that separate the different risk groups for HIV-1. HIV is not an airborne virus and cannot be transmitted through casual contact, kissing, urine or even insect vectors [17]. The transmission is only possible if bodily fluids come in contact with a mucous membrane, damaged tissue or injected directly into the bloodstream [18]. Unprotected heterosexual intercourse is the main transmission route causing over 90% of HIV infections in adults [16].…

    • 891 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    C56 Week 4

    • 1005 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The mice will be divided into 4 groups as follows Group 1 (24) - This group will receive vehicle (no HIV-1 Tat or influenza vaccine). This serves as control for all the other groups Group 2 – This group will receive HIV-1 Tat at week 1 and week 3 intravenously at a dose of 500 ng (to determine the effect of only HIV-1 Tat). Group 3 – This group will receive vehicle on week 1 and week 3, followed by influenza vaccine on week 4 and booster dose on week 7 (to determine the responses mediated only by influenza vaccine). Group 4 – This group will receive HIV-1 Tat on week 1 and week 3, followed by influenza vaccine on week 4 and booster dose on week 7 (to determine the effect of HIV-1 Tat on influenza vaccine).…

    • 1005 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Ccr5 Unit 1 Term Paper

    • 437 Words
    • 2 Pages

    A new study has been developed in hopes of treating and curing HIV. The main agent is a protein called ZFN that can delete another protein called CCR5. The CCR5 is required for certain types of HIV to enter and infect your T-Cells. T-Cells are white blood cells the body uses to fight HIV, but the most important of these are CD4 T-Cells. HIV is known to infect the CD4+ T-Cells in your blood.…

    • 437 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    AIDS is a significant issue that is still continuing on in the world today, effecting millions and adding more to the list. There have been many battles against this disease, which majority have failed, and only a small amount that have found success . The film, “Age of AIDS”, brought up many issues throughout the course of this entire AIDS epidemic, from the past, and some that are occurring in the present. There were many powerful scenes throughout the film, but some scenes particularly stood out to me more than others. 1A The endeavour for trying to find an effective treatment for AIDS was a huge problem.…

    • 1353 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    HIV attacks the immune system so the body can not fight germs and diseases. A person infected with the virus in the body leads to the rest of his life. The human immunodeficiency virus is part of the genre Lentivirus.1 These constitute a group within the family Retroviridae.2 Viruses of this group have common morphological and biological properties. Several species are attacked by the lentivirus, whose main feature is a long incubation period that leads to disease after several years.3…

    • 407 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Purpose Of NIMH

    • 680 Words
    • 3 Pages

    1. What is the purpose of the NIMH? The purpose of the National Institutes of Mental Health is to conduct research in hopes finding a cure, treatment, prevention and better understanding of mental illness. 2.…

    • 680 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    AIDS Virus: A Case Study

    • 1135 Words
    • 5 Pages

    When the United States became aware of the AIDS disease in early 1980’s most people thought of it as a death sentence. No treatment was available and the cause of the disease was unknown. People today infected with the HIV – the virus that causes Aids can live rather normal healthy lives. (Aidsinfo.Nih.gov 2015) HIV stands for the human immunodeficiency virus.…

    • 1135 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    HIV/AIDS The 1970’s and early 1980’s was a very prominent time in history, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) came to the world’s attention. This disease continues to spread all over the world, costing millions of people’s lives each and every year. HIV is among one of the world’s most common and dangerous diseases.…

    • 211 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    The fourth medicinal treatment slows the onset of HIV/AIDs by blocking the virus from entering the CD4 cells altogether. The entry or fusion inhibitor treatment has proven to be the most successful treatment thus far but alas still does not cure the disease. Examples of medications in this treatment includes enfuvirtide (Fuzeon) and maraviroc (Selzentry) (Mayo clinic 2015). Lastly the final treatment proven to slow HIV/Aids is called integrase inhibitors. This treatment prevent the virus by breaking down or disabling integrase, which is a protein needed by the virus to insert its genetic material into the CD4 cells’ nucleus.…

    • 1798 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Unfortunately, there is no known cure for AIDS. However—thanks to the advancements in medical science—there are a few treatments available to keep the virus contained. One highly controversial treatment is the administration of…

    • 1589 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    The AIDS Pandemic

    • 1106 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Though this theory stands true with a legitimate explanation, it does not date back to the actual origin of HIV. (C.…

    • 1106 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Ols Co-Culture Model

    • 1078 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Phytohemagglutinin (PHA-M) were added in the medium to a final concentration of 5 μg/mL to activate the PBMCs. After activation, 1 ng HIV-1 p24/ml HIV-1Ba-L virus, measured by HIV-1 p24 ELISA (ABL inc., Rockville, MD), will be added to the culture medium to infect the PBMCs for 3…

    • 1078 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    'Acquired Immune Deficiency Virus (AIDS) is caused by a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that weakens the immune system , making the body susceptible to and unable to recover from op­portunistic diseases that lead to death' (USAID, 2010, pp.173). It is one of the major challenges for Pub­lic Health and it is the world's leading infectious killer. According to the WHO, 35 million people are living with HIV worldwide. In middle and low income countries is the majority of infec­ted people. In 2013, 2.1 million new infections occurred in low and middle income countries (WHO, 2013).…

    • 2493 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Superior Essays

Related Topics