Is the cure for HIV coming soon?

A complete cure for HIV disease has passed the first phase trial and provided US scientists with a grant of $ 20 million.

The research team from the University of North Carolina and the National Health System for Children (USA) has just published in the scientific journal Cell Reports the project that the whole world expects: a complete cure for HIV infected people. Phase 1 testing has proven its effectiveness and safety.

New HIV drugs can wake up HIV cells "hibernating", attracting them out of hiding places to be completely destroyed - photos: SHUTTERSTOCK.

Dr. David Margolis (University of North Carolina), one of the senior authors of the study, said the drug is an immunotherapy, which acts as an effective hormone to help the immune system. can get up and defeat the disease. Immunotherapy is a new way used by many scientists in the treatment of other serious diseases, such as cancer.

A special feature of this new HIV drug is that it can attract HIV cells in the form of "hibernation" from the hiding position, then be destroyed by the immune system. With previous methods, "hibernating" HIV cells seem to be invulnerable because older drugs have no way of finding and defeating, leading to the patient never getting rid of the disease despite the drug. helps to bring the disease to a stable state.

Dr. Margolis said he and his colleagues hoped to create more "Berlin patients". "Berlin patient" is an American man named Timothy Brown, the only person who has a medical record to be cured of HIV. Mr. Brown also had leukemia and was cured by a bone marrow transplant, which inadvertently activated his immune system and miraculously defeated HIV.

However, later, when scientists attempted to repeat the miracle of 6 terminal HIV patients, it was ineffective and all 6 died within 1 year after marrow transplantation. Therefore, this new HIV drug is expected to lead to a safer and more successful approach to immunotherapy.

Immediately after the announcement, scientists immediately received funding from GlaxoSmithKline pharmaceutical company: they will provide 4 million USD / year within 5 years, ie a total of 20 million USD to support the research team variable ideas come true.