Find new antibodies, disable 98% of the HIV / AIDS gene sequence

HIV virus attacks and is almost ineffective in the human immune system. At present, there is no drug that completely destroys this virus and if it is developed and devastated, people will be infected with the AIDS immunodeficiency syndrome, a disease that still steals many lives every year.

We have made advances in technology and medicine, but it seems that step by step is not far enough to have an effective HIV / AIDS treatment. This disease presents particularly difficult challenges because it attacks the very thing that protects us from disease - the immune system.

Image of a cell infected with HIV.

To find an effective treatment, scientists at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health tried to find new ways to combat these viruses. Main use of antibodies of our body.

Antibodies are proteins in human blood , which can detect foreign substances entering the body (such as viruses or other dangerous lips). After the hazard is determined, the antibody will activate the body's own support system. Scientists have found an antibody that has the potential to fight HIV, which is the N6 antibody .

N6 is found in HIV patients' blood, and the researchers claim that it can neutralize 98% of the HIV viral gene sequence. Among them, about 16 to 20 previous gene sequences were able to resist antibodies at the same level as N6.

According to the study, this antibody prevents infection by clinging to a certain area of ​​the HIV virus envelope, preventing this wicked virus from being able to bind (to destroy) immune cells. .

This mode of operation is identical to VRCo1 , another potential antibody discovered previously. Although VRCo1 can also disable 90% of the HIV gene sequence, N6 can do it more effectively.

Besides, N6 antibodies provide scientists with a more optimal treatment, because N6 can be put directly into the fat layer under our skin, instead of the method put into the vein of VRCo1.

Which way for a cure for HIV / AIDS?

N6 antibodies provide scientists with a more optimal treatment.

Statistics show that an average of 36.7 million people worldwide are living with HIV / AIDS. Currently the treatment methods are a combination of drugs and antiviral therapy, also known as ART (short for Anti-Retroviral Therapy).

ART is an antiretroviral therapy, or antiretroviral (anti-retrovirus) treatment . These antiretroviral drugs work to slow HIV replication in the body, thereby increasing immunity and reducing the chance of getting opportunistic infections. This is a method to increase the quality of life for infected people.

N6 has a huge potential, they are able to detect and neutralize the majority of HIV gene segments. This antibody is one of our promising discoveries on the way to finding a remedy for this century's disease.

But we still have to wait a long time. Further studies of antibodies will help us get an effective remedy soon. And undoubtedly, these studies bring hope to millions of infected people around the world.