Iran: We've developed AIDS drug

Scientists in Iran have succeeded in developing a drug for AIDS containment, the Iranian news agency FARS reported. Last week, the Iranian health minister promised good news on the matter, yet no information regarding the drug and the treatment method has been released.

On Wednesday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad held a speech at Tehran University implying that: "There is a development on the issue, and if we announce it this would mean a tremendous development, but for now we lack the ability to answer all questions and we must continue dealing with different aspects of the matter."

According to the report, the new drug, unmatched by any other in the world, was developed by Tehran University medical scientists. Test results show that that using the drug strengthens the body's immune system and assists in dealing with the AIDS Virus.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3300569,00.html

Iran opens heavy-water nuclear reactor

Reactors fueled by enriched uranium use regular - or light - water in the chain reaction that produces energy. Heavy water contains a heavier hydrogen particle, which allow the reactor to run on natural uranium mined by Iran, forgoing the enrichment progress. The spent fuel from a heavy-water reactor can be reprocessed to extract plutonium for use in a bomb.

Vice President Gholamreza Aghazadeh, who also heads the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said the heavy-water facility will be used to treat and diagnose AIDS and cancer, and for other medicine and agricultural purposes.

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/world/15370613.htm

Nice try.

The best insurance is to have an invaluable secret recipe.

If Iran has discovered a total cure for AIDS and the US Gov won't allow it to be used here?

They have the interest of the pharmaceutical companies to protect.

They won't let us have the AIDS drug for the same reason they wouldn't let us have Plan B forever.

For a Country that will put Homosexuals to death, I smell a rat, a very big one!

flowing endlessly -- the Right Wing must have victory in November, or else.

If I had AIDS or any other medical condition, I wouldn't trust any "drug" offered by that psycho.

The virus can mutate, making it harder to discover it in blood products.

The story smells to me, too, but, if true, think of the profits this would generate for Iran. Also a severe blow to the so-called medical research superiority of the U.S.

Instead of stoning them to death, they will soon nuke them(?)

Iran's cure for AIDS = a nuclear bomb.

what lying scumbags

Them Iranians is a bunch of bigots.

That's pretty bigoted.

Other people have defined it as that. But I will say More Gay have been affected by it.

can get AIDS and still consider it primarily a "gay disease", even though many of us know that it affects everyone.

Blood is blood...straight OR gay, and that's how HIV travels. The idea that anyone still think that it only affects gays makes me sick.

But then again, I think the ignorance of hating homosexuals is the same sort of ignorance that says Iran doesn't do AIDS research because they hate gays there.

The funny thing is I am a Homosexual and I have AIDS. I will go toe to toe with anyone who wishes to debate this.

Not homosexuals.

It's like Saudi Arabia pioneering new, female-friendly methods of birth control.

Somehow convincing me that a country that hates gays would put this much into research and cure of AIDS isn't likely.

There are great advances to be made if your human subjects don't qualify as human under the law or in the eyes of society. As proud as we are of it, medical science is only a couple hundred years removed from leeches and vaporous humours--and in some places not that far. So "lets-see-what-happens" science still has the potential to provide spectacular effect, both in its results and its ethical transgression.

Such things are hardly limited to the Iranians, if the Iranians are actually doing it.

They use leeches NOW!

http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2004/504_leech.html

The FDA classifies leeches as a medical device for use in restoring blood circulation. Apparently they work well.

how could a country that thinks God created Adam and Eve six thousand years ago could put a man on the moon?

I agree.

9mm,32,36,and 45, conviently deliverd to the back of the head, publicly.

Much as i enjoy the way this nut makes christian-cult leadrers squrim by saying the same BS as they do, this is just to stupid for words.

They're far ahead of us with stem cells, for instance. So while it sounds wacky, it's... not as wacky as it sounds! LOL

A peer reviewed source please.

But perusing these links might prove educational: www.parstimes.com/health/

I looked through some of the links provided on that page, but I can't seem to find any that point to research projects, status, or published literature.

I was asking for backup to the statement that they were more advanced than other parts of the world in Pharmaceutical/Medical research. A good start to that is peer reviewed articles in respected scholarly publications. If i got to one, the the biblio could probably lead me to others.

http://www.boston.com/news/science/articles/2006/08/22/iran_looks_to_science_as_source_of_pride/

It makes sense. The only people who don't like stem cell research are American politicians, and only because they see it as a back door way to outlaw abortions.

allot of the current research is "allowed" because of the secular nature of the Universities and learning institutions. If Ahmadenijad get's his way and there is a purge of these types of people from the learning institutions, then Iran will take a HUGE step backwards, back to where they were in the 80's in terms of getting good research.

There are plenty of hard working smart people in Iran, hopefully, they will be allowed to work and make crucial discoveries for us all.

I don't know the theological background, but apparently there isn't the same interpretation of the status of a fertilized egg, as there is in many Christian sects.

All the more reason for the big business loving governments of Britain and America to go to war with them. Think of all that money the western drug companies will miss out on, not to mention all the jollies for government officials.

Just as an aside

Its ironic but during a year I spent working in Stockholm I was displaced from my usual hotel one week because of advance bookings for a world AIDS conference. There was not a hotel room to be had in the entire city. Four star and up were taken by conference attendees and the cheaper rooms were all grabbed by the influx of prostitutes to the city. Well maybe they were hoping for some free medical advice...

Amazing.

Ironically, the U.S. government has stopped allowing American scientific journals to publish articles that come from Iranian scientists.

I hadn't heard that. No wonder they hate us for our freedom.

Is there a link online regarding the censure?

There was a major editorial about it, directly criticizing the Bush administration for scientific censorship and violating the first amendment.

It didn't make much noise with regular media.

And I haven't got online access.

I found this though:

http://www.iranian.com/Opinion/2004/January/Rahni/index.html

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that the editor of JACS was told by officials from the American government that he could not publish a scientific paper from an Iranian scientist.

Sounds pretty definitive to me.

To tell an academic journal what they can and can't print? If this journal published the article and got hit with some kind of federal charge because of it, they would have constitutional lawyers beating down their door to represent them in the inevitable slam-dunk free speech case.

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"A group of American scientific societies is planning to defy a recent US government ruling that has prevented their journals from publishing work by scientists from Iran, Iraq, Cuba, Libya, and Sudan, all countries subject to US trade embargoes.

Historically, US trade embargoes have regulated the transfer of goods but not of information, as law makers believed that a free exchange of ideas would encourage democratic development in the targeted countries. Trade legislation has normally specified journal articles and other written material as exempt from regulation.

But last September the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, which administers trade embargoes, announced that any substantive changes made by American reviewers, translators, or editors to manuscripts from the embargoed countries would constitute a service to the country and would be permissible only with a special licence. Violators of the trade regulations can incur fines as high as $500 000 (£268 . . . "

http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/extract/328/7439/543-b

And the editorial was really rather strident in tone

Real scientists don't like the Flat Earth crowd

in the scientific field. They also collaborate with many global researchers, the top number coming from the US.

http://www.librijournal.org/pdf/2002-2pp88-98.pdf#search=%22iran%20chemistry%20publications%22

Despite the intentions of the Bush admin. they're still publishing.

http://www.valleyadvocate.com/gbase/News/content?oid=oid:57295

This has nothing to do with Cuba.

and one of the smartest guys I have ever known.

Every little bit helps.

(Anyone know what the prevalence rate for HIV is in Iran?)

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You've reviewed the research yourself, professor?

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I'll wager that the drug they've research won't cure AIDS but shows activity against HIV and is one compound in a library of important compounds that aid in the fight. Because Iran has a pretty good scientific program, despite what anti-Iranian bigots have to say whenever that country makes a tiny step forward.

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The ones peer reviewing the papers.

That's "containment" all right!

days. With all these new tanks and super jets and torpedo's and now they can cure aids, even though they hate gays. What a crock of shit.

Why are Duers so ready to swallow anything that comes out of the mouth of anyone who does not like Bush?

If you think this guy running Iran only hates Bush you are seriously in denial. He hates all of us. Just wait til HC wins in 08, I don't think things will be so rosy then. In fact if Bush does not bomb Iran HC will.

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Sorry but I just don't see the people running Iran singing John Lennon songs and saying all you need is love. These people are incredibly dangerous and whoever the next Prez is they will have the same problem to deal with.

I could on the other hand care less of your feelings about my mental state.

...and then blow your argument by putting forth the fantasy that Clinton will win in '08.

Try a stronger argument next time. :D

(And don't forget, we have you on record as supporting a preventative - illegal - military strike on Iran.)

It looks like she will be on the ticket. Who are you so sure will beat her in the primary? Regardless of who it is the problem will be the same.

http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/14336567.htm

There's nothing in the article in the OP that indicates they are claiming a cure for AIDS. They're only claiming "the drug strengthens the body's immune system and assists in dealing with the AIDS Virus".

There's also no indication that the Iranian president hates you.

My question is, why do you find it necessary to exaggerate like this?

In his constant calls for the West to convert to Islam.

So wanting you to convert means he hates you?

How do you feel about Jehovah's witnesses?

Can't write an objective story about a promising medical development without gratuitously tossing around and spinning the nuclear issue.

It's gotten to the point where I wonder why I click on American MSM sites at all anymore.

..there is no drug, no therapy, no medication of any kind, including heavy water...that can do anything at all to a virus.

There are no antiviral drugs, the common cold is a virus, and all any medication can do is mask or help the symptoms, not the cause.

Antibiotics deal with bacteria, not virii, and antibiotics have ZERO effect on any virus.

The Iranian claim that heavy water can assist in AIDS treatment is absolute twaddle.

I might also add that heavy water has been around for more than fifty years, and as such, said resource would have shown results before this date in the MASSIVE fight against this disease.There are no results because it does not work.

Should any DU'er wish to dispute this comment...please contact the AIDS foundation in your local city, or speak to any virologist, who will confirm what I have just stated. Failing that, please publish the relevant articles and medical journals that confirm that this research has shown results (British Medical Journal, The Lancet....)

There is no effective antiviral drug.

It is an indisputable, unassailable fact.

Because there are most certainly antiviral drugs. There's no cure for the common cold, now, and penicillin doesn't work against it.

But there certainly are antiviral drugs. Including drugs that are used in the fight against HIV. They're not cures, but they're certainly helping people live a whole lot longer.

So the for the reading... I'd suggest starting wtih AIDS literature. I'm sure you can find interesting brochures in at the AIDS foundation in your local city. If you know any virologists, they'd be a big help. Oh, and try reading the article in the OP. Because Iran's not claiming anything about heavy water.

You know. They called the Titanic unsinkable. Or was that unassailable? Gosh.

When I said, "do a little reading" I was being facetitious.

The guy needs to repeat high school.

He(or she) is right. There is no drug that kills a virus directly in the human body. The drugs work by interrupting some key process the virus needs to cause infection. Such as getting into its target cell, replicating its RNA code once inside the cell, forming its protein coat, etc. That is why the HIV is so hornery, it has so many avenues to infect the human body and replicate and it keeps changing.

The polio vaccine is actually not a drug that kills the polio virus, it teaches the human body to deal with the polio virus itself. This is a successful treatment b/c the polio virus generally is the same every time it gets into the body. Things like the common cold virus and the HIV can be different whenever they get into the body.

Now please explain how a heavy water reactor will help with the fight against HIV and agricultural advancements.

the guy was dead wrong. I mean really dead wrong. I mean totally embarassing to even be standing next to him when he's so wrong wrong.

I suppose, if you make really weird excuses like "when he said there's 'no such thing as antivirals,' when he said 'antivirals' he was referring to UFOs from Mars" well then yeah, he'd be correct. But that's just dumb.

What's the usefulness of heavy water reactors? Well, I still don't see what that's got to do with this particular topic. But nuclear reactors are real handy in generating power, and you need power to run AIDS research laboratories, and farms. And things like that. Which is why we've built them here in the United States. Why do you ask?

From

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/26/AR2006082600137.html

By the way, nice job saying he is wrong and calling him dumb without any explanation. Let's attack the poster and divert from the statement, which was TECHNICALLY correct.

Anti-Biotics kill organisms by interrupting their functions necessary for them to live
"Anti-Virals" prevent viruses from replicating and do not kill them.

Well, actually I and other's did point out where he was wrong. But if you want to go through point by point.

"..there is no drug, no therapy, no medication of any kind, including heavy water...that can do anything at all to a virus."

Well, there are anti-viral drugs. There are inhibitors for reverse transcriptases. There are vaccines for polio, smallpox, and all sorts of other viruses. There are antivirals for shingles, which I didn't know about, but thanks whoever mentioned that. So there are all sorts of drugs, therapies and medications that do all sorts of things to viruses. So here's a case where this person was technical incorrect.

"There are no antiviral drugs"

Again, also incorrect. But this is just repetition.

"the common cold is a virus, and all any medication can do is mask or help the symptoms, not the cause."

Now, this is technically correct. The common cold is a virus. And over the counter medication for colds relieves the symptoms, it doesn't destroy the virus. This is also irrelevant, it's got nothing to do with the discussion.

"Antibiotics deal with bacteria, not virii, and antibiotics have ZERO effect on any virus."

Also, technically true, but again, this has nothing to do with the discussion. I should also add that sometimes doctors prescribe antibiotics during a case of the flu. This isn't because they thing the antibiotics will kill the influenza virus, this is because a bad case of the flu can often lead to pneumonia. Which is a very serious complication, and that's caused by bacteria. And doctors will prescribe antibiotics as a preventative. So that's why sometimes you hear about a prescription of an antibiotic which appears to be for a virus, but actually isn't. Again, nothing to do with this discussion.

"The Iranian claim that heavy water can assist in AIDS treatment is absolute twaddle."

Well, it would be absolute twaddle if this is what Iran was claiming. But the claim that Iran is claiming heavy water is a cure for AIDS is absolute twaddle. Iran is building a nuclear reactor for its infrastucture. It powers labs, farms, etc. It can also be used to generate isotopes which are an absolute require meant for scientific research, such as NMR, as somebody else mentioned, or mass spec. or all sorts of things. But I think they were mostly talking about infrastructure. Either way, the poster here was totally incorrect.

"I might also add that heavy water has been around for more than fifty years, and as such, said resource would have shown results before this date in the MASSIVE fight against this disease.There are no results because it does not work."

While this is technically correct (technically heavy water is toxic), it's based on a totally incorrect assumption. Explained above.

"Should any DU'er wish to dispute this comment...please contact the AIDS foundation in your local city, or speak to any virologist, who will confirm what I have just stated. Failing that, please publish the relevant articles and medical journals that confirm that this research has shown results (British Medical Journal, The Lancet....)"

Well, this is basically an opinion statement. Pretty funny though, considering how wrong this person is, and clearly hasn't followed his/her own advice.

"There is no effective antiviral drug."

Repition of the same mistake from above.

"It is an indisputable, unassailable fact."

Here's another obvious technical error.

Well, there ShowMe. This person was "indisputably" wrong in just about everything he/she said. Except for a couple of irrelevant facts like "the common cold is a virus."

Someone I know had them a couple of years ago, and the doctor put her on anti-virals right away. They have been shown to be effective, although you will still have several unpleasant weeks. But anti-virals can cut the course of the disease by about half.

They are not cheap, though.

Heavy water (HW) is used to identify proteins' 3D-structures (including, of course, that of viral proteins). HW is a component of solvents used in NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) analysis, which is one of the methods available to determine the structure of proteins.

Nuclear research reactors using HW as a neutron moderator (CANDU I think) were also used to produce large amounts of various radio-isotopes useful for medical diagnosis and research...

Mac L'lyr

is owned by the corporate backers of the Bush administration - the very same corporations that are making huge fortunes manufacturing weapons and other military hardware for war in the Middle East. There is no surprise for me in the content produced by their propaganda organs with regard to Iran when billions of dollars in profits are at stake.

The effectiveness of the propaganda campaign against Iran is evidenced by the cacophony of hatred one encounters every time the country is the topic of a thread here on DU. Some of these expressions are rather odd coming from those who claim to be progressive. The deliberate mis-characterization of statements by those who oppose war against Iran is particularly irritating. One must learn to, at times, hold one's tongue - or fingers as the case may be.

because if you hear what they are saying, you know the real truth is
the exact opposite - with these past six years as practice, I have gotten
very good at the 180 degree spin needed to tell me what Ineed to know

Iranians cannot possibly invent anything because
they are backwards, freedom hating, A-rabs who
want to eat your babies and come to do battle
in your grocery stores.

They must be bombed... no, not just bombed...
they must be nuked back to the stone age.

Anybody in disagreement with this is an IslamoFascist
appeasing, communist sympathizing, treasonous bastard
and will be fined 3 credits.

That's precisely what I meant.

And I'm not sure what the point of your post was. I assume it's sarcastic, if so who is it directed towards?

from an attempted slap when you don't even know what ethnic group you are talking about.

Iranians = Persians, which do not = Arabs

And no one is saying that the people are not smart and capable, what is being said is this is pure propaganda from a backwards govt. that doesn't realize the "cures for AIDS" are found quite frequently in the labs when you deal with individual viruses in petri dishes and mice, they just don't translate into humans very well.

Shit, Clorox is a cure for AIDS in a petri dish as well, but you can't quite put that into the human body can you?

I would imagine the researcher knows this, but the govt mouthpiece jumped the gun to claim victory for the Iranian people.

Don't I just feel like the big moran.

A post that was pointless and one you choose not to defend.

It was satire of the Iran-hating bigots on this thread.

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There aren't any "see no evil Iranian butt kissers."

Just level headed people, and the anti-Iranian bigots.

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Losing the air plane argument over there, so you've got to bring it over here?

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Keep telling yourself that.

That's no better than Bush's "you're either with us or against us" bit.

But if people think that Iranians are a backwards, freedom-hating, gay-hating people who are stuck in the middle ages, then they're bigots.

Plain and simple.

that's freeper talk not DU talk.

But look read the thread. That sentiment's rampant and what Praeclarus was responding to.

I see somebody got it. How refreshing.

The pomposity of some you all is breathtaking
I must say. Next time I'll be sure to add some
graphical aids for the less swift amongst us.

I think some people just have a problem with who you've chosen to satire.

:silly:

Patwah Robertson and Jerry Falwell are probably having a real hissy right about now. Can't have a cure for AIDS 'cause it's a punishment from God.

exchange for the AIDS meds. Oh but wait, so many of the people who have AIDS in this country dont have health insurance and are too poor to buy medication.

Will the US forbid the use of the drug because it was developed by our "enemy"???

Reminds me when the US embassy urged Pakistan to refuse aid from Cuba.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=364&topic_id=1977981