According to a new study, HIV-1 uses a variety of strategies to avoid being detected by the immune system and to evade treatment with antiretroviral drugs.
The study, published in the journal Nature, was led by scientists at the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard.
“This study provides the first comprehensive view of how HIV-1 escapes from both the immune system and antiretroviral drugs,” said senior author Bruce Walker, MD, director of the Ragon Institute.
“The findings could lead to the development of new therapeutic strategies to combat HIV-1 infection.”
Using a sophisticated computational approach, the researchers analyzed data from more than 1,600 people with HIV-1 infection, including more than 700 who were treated with antiretroviral therapy (ART).
They found that HIV-1 uses a variety of mechanisms to evade the immune system, including “mutation, deletion, insertions and changes in the expression of viral genes.”
In addition, the virus uses a “stealth” mode of infection, in which it infects cells without causing any symptoms.
“This study shows that HIV-1 is extraordinarily adept at evading the immune system and antiretroviral drugs,” said first author Nicolas Chomont, PhD, of the Ragon Institute.
“The findings underscore the need for continued efforts to develop new strategies to fight HIV-1 infection.”
A new study has identified how HIV is able to evade drugs and immunity, allowing the virus to remain stealthy and cause lifelong infection.
The findings, published in the journal Nature, could lead to the development of new treatments that can better target the virus.
HIV is a master of evasion. The virus can mutate to avoid detection by the immune system, and it can develop resistance to antiretroviral drugs.
Now, researchers have identified a new mechanism that allows HIV to evade both immunity and drugs.
The mechanism involves a protein on the surface of HIV, known as gp41. This protein helps the virus to fuse with cells, allowing it to infect them.
However, the gp41 protein is also the target of many drugs and the immune system.
The new study, led by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, has found that gp41 can change its shape to avoid detection.
The gp41 protein has two parts: a “head” and a “tail.” The head of the protein is the target of drugs and the immune system.
The tail of the protein is flexible, and it can change its shape. The researchers found that the tail can wrap around the head, hiding it from view.
In this “cloaked” state, the gp41 protein is invisible to the immune system and drugs.
The researchers say that this cloak-and-dagger strategy allows HIV to evade both immunity and antiretroviral drugs.
The findings could lead to the development of new treatments that can better target HIV.
Currently, there is no cure for HIV. However, antiretroviral drugs can keep the virus under control and prevent it from causing illness.
The new study provides insights into how HIV evades these drugs and how the virus might be stopped.
