Study: Mass produced antibodies kill HIV in newborn monkeys in 2 weeks
Source: The Oregonian/OregonLive
Human antibodies that were mass produced in a lab have eliminated HIV from newborn monkeys, a new study showed.
Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University were stunned by the results, published in Nature Medicine. Not only did the antibodies work in each instance to eliminate the virus that causes AIDS, the therapy was also quick, clearing the virus from the body within two weeks.
"We're very excited about this study because we think it opens some doors for alternative therapies that could be used to prevent infection in babies and children," said Nancy Haigwood, the lead investigator and head of the OHSU primate center.
This is the first time human antibodies have been used in this way, Haigwood said. Researchers have also tried administering antiretroviral drugs to attack a new infection, but those experiments have failed, she said. Antiretroviral drugs are given to pregnant women who are HIV positive to prevent them from transmitting the virus to their babies, but the drugs are expensive and not widely available in parts of the world where HIV is rampant.
Read more: http://www.oregonlive.com/health/index.ssf/2016/03/ohsu_researchers_eliminate_hiv.html#incart_big-photo
Seems like progress!
HuckleB
(35,773 posts)Thanks for sharing!
Here's hoping that this treatment will eventually work.
Glad to know this. Thank you.
Howler
(4,225 posts)I may be mistaken but doesn't intra furor kick up your antibody cascade?
MillennialDem
(2,367 posts)Iggo
(47,563 posts)God's cool with monkeys.
happyslug
(14,779 posts)The AIDS virus has an outside "coat" that changes over time. Present theory is that AIDS affects a person, the AIDS virus expands in numbers but then is detected by the Human body and develops Antibodies that attack the AIDS virus as it is at that time period and almost wipe it out. Then the AIDS virus develop a different outer coat, which hides it from the Antibodies till the body develop a new set of antibodies against the new coat, then the new Antibodies attack the virus with the new coat. This leads to a race between the AIDS body changing its outer coat and then expanding rapidly, and the body developing antibodies against each form of virus under a new coat and eliminating the AIDS virus from the body.
This race between the AIDS virus and the Body goes on and on, but unless the body kills off ALL of the AIDS virus (Which is believed to have occur a couple of times) the AIDs Virus eventually "wins" the race as the body gets weaker and weaker and dies from an unrelated disease (most people with AIDS do NOT technically die from AIDS, but some other disease the body can NOT fight off AND continue its race with the AIDS Virus).
Thus a massive influx of Antibodies may be enough to eliminate the AIDS virus BEFORE it can change its outer coat.
yourpaljoey
(2,166 posts)happyslug
(14,779 posts)The two types were the benign AIDS that weakened a body but did not kill you, but then people were later on thought to be infected by a "Deadly" version that killed people. A lot of effort went into finding a "cure" for the deadly version of AIDS, but the theory did die, but it was a long lingering death (The changeable coat theory was found to be a better explanation of the differet types of AIDS virus being found).
The concept of Viruses having changeable coats actually dates back decades. I first read about it in the 1980s, but in regards to other viral infections not AIDS. Why it was NOT assumed to be the case with AIDS seems unclear, I suspect wishful thinking. On the other hand, AIDS being a killer, and the other viruses with Coats tended NOT be be killers, just long lingering diseases (i.e. the viruses were designed to spread but the best way to do that was NOT to kill the host, but at the same time survive inside a host) seems to have encouraged researchers to miss the concept of changeable coats in the case of AIDS.
AIDS research has gone down several blind alleys (The two types of AIDS theory was one such blind alley) but at the same time a lot of research has been done.
Since the 1990s, two types of AIDS have been found, with AIDS-1 the dominate version, which has in turn four types (types M,N,O,and P), with AIDS-1 Type M being dominate and itself broken into subtypes, A,B,C,D,E, F,G,H,J, K and "CRF" .
AIDS viruses do intermix and thus the "CRF" is "circulating recombinant forms" of combination of the various types and subtypes:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subtypes_of_HIV
HIV type 1 and HIV type 2 are two distinct viruses. Worldwide, the predominant virus is HIV-1, and generally when people talk about HIV without specifying the type of virus they are referring to HIV-1.
The relatively uncommon HIV-2 virus is concentrated in West Africa, but has been seen in other countries. It is less infectious and progresses slower than HIV-1. While commonly used antiretroviral drugs are active against HIV-2, optimum treatment is poorly understood
- See more at: http://www.avert.org/professionals/hiv-science/types-strains#sthash.XW45XqNd.dpuf
http://www.avert.org/professionals/hiv-science/types-strains
The strains of HIV-1 can be classified into four groups.4 The most important group, M, is the major group and is responsible for the majority of the global HIV epidemic.
The other three groups are N, O and P. They are quite uncommon and only occur in Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea
Subtypes within HIV-1 group M
Within group M there are known to be at least nine genetically distinct subtypes of HIV-1. These are subtypes A, B, C, D, F, G, H, J and K.
- See more at: http://www.avert.org/professionals/hiv-science/types-strains#sthash.XW45XqNd.dpuf
The dominant HIV su-btype in the Americas, Western Europe and Australasia is sub-type B. As a result, the great majority of HIV clinical research has been conducted in populations where sub-type B predominates. However this sub-type represents only 12% of global HIV infections.
In contrast, less research is available for sub=type C, although just under half of all people living with HIV have subtype C. It is very common in the high prevalence countries of Southern Africa, as well as in the horn of Africa and India.
We have learned a lot about AIDS in the last 30 years, but still a long way from a cure.
yourpaljoey
(2,166 posts)Aristus
(66,436 posts)Sounds like they're doing some excellent research.
bjobotts
(9,141 posts)Aristus
(66,436 posts)It didn't seem to correspond with my own reply. Was it intended for me?
sarcasmo
(23,968 posts)10 grand per dose.
Liberal Veteran
(22,239 posts)I've all but given up on the promise of a cure. Fortunately, the meds are not as bad as they were. I religiously take them to guard against becoming resistant. In the last 16 years since I started taking meds, I have been undetectable and my immune system has rebounded to near normal.
It would be so nice to not have to worry about the meds, but now I've gotten to the age where meds are going to be with me for one reason or another (now I have heart disease as well....yay....more meds).
If it pans out, I would be ecstatic, but so many promising starts have led nowhere that I just happy what we have works well.
Zira
(1,054 posts)A diet change will help combat heat disease. There are terrific documentaries on Netflix. I stopped fighting my body and started giving it the nutrients it wants and stopped with the stuff it didn't like and now I take no pills and easily make it up two flights of stairs now. I also got a gym weight machine on ebay which is the best $300 I ever spent. You sit in a chair and lift weights with you legs and pull down weights with your arms. It has a pully and the weights are behind you. I'm amazed of my new found strength so now I'm dedicated to keeping strong and increasing my strength. I started out with no strength.
This is what I bought:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gold-s-Gym-XR-55-Home-Gym-System-GGSY29013-/291697108353?hash=item43ea80a581:g:4aAAAOSwxYxUyXRv
It comes with a lat bar to pull down on. I won't do the butterflies because I'm female and I don't want to look like a football player. My brother put it together for me. I will not be without one again because I am much stronger now and I am going to be in my 50's soon and I want to be strong for the rest of my life.
Yo_Mama
(8,303 posts)work on a newborn or perhaps even someone very recently infected.
But isn't it better to concentrate on how sophisticated these therapies now are, and how well they work? We've come so far!
If the virus isn't detectable it isn't doing anything to you, and it shouldn't have a chance to "escape" like it used to in the early days of AV therapies, i.e. mutate so that you have to switch therapies.
For me, this is the miracle. That we have taken an infection which used to be a death sentence for all but a very few with natural immunity, and turned it into a condition that can be entirely manageable. We need to get this message out - it will get people to be more active in seeking earlier diagnosis and treatment. If they understand how well this usually works now, it will change the mental equation in a very beneficial way.
Take care of yourself. Don't misunderstand me - I'm not glad that you do now have a heart condition, but I am so very, very glad that you will be here with the rest of us suffering the indignities and irritations of aging. As my older brother says, "It sure beats the alternative!" You'll get to enjoy the creaky joints, the inevitable vision problems, and oh, the aching back with the rest of us.
Thanks for posting. It's important that people hear about your experience. Mind you, I want a vaccine or a miracle pill or a whatever that just makes it all go away, but focusing on that hope tends to suppress news of what we do have, and how well it can work with timely detection and prompt and adherent treatment.