Topic: Acne Drug Prevents HIV Breakout

[Nemesis]

Link to full article

Unlike the drugs used in HAART which target the virus, minocycline homes in on, and adjusts T cells, major immune system agents and targets of HIV infection. According to Clements, minocycline reduces the ability of T cells to activate and proliferate, both steps crucial to HIV production and progression toward full blown AIDS.

Using cells from HIV-infected humans on HAART, the team isolated the "resting" immune cells and treated half of them with minocycline. Then they counted how many virus particles were reactivated, finding completely undetectable levels in the treated cells versus detectable levels in the untreated cells.

Interesting approach to a virus.  Affect not the virus itself but the way the body responds to it.

[marstone]

very interesting and promising, but treating cells directly and doing it in a body are very different things.  Hope it translates over to the "in vivo" model.

[Starfox1701]

But by preventing T-cell proliferation aren't they still surpressing the imunsystem there by creationg the same end result; an inability to fight infection?

[marstone]

But by preventing T-cell proliferation aren't they still surpressing the imunsystem there by creationg the same end result; an inability to fight infection?

from the article

"Since minocycline reduced T cell activation, you might think it would have impaired the immune systems in the macaques, which are very similar to humans, but we didn't see any deleterious effect," says Gregory Szeto, a graduate student in the Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine working in the Retrovirus Laboratory at Hopkins. "This drug strikes a good balance and is ideal for HIV because it targets very specific aspects of immune activation."

[Tulwar]

Interresting.  The problem with vaccines against HIV is that they cause the immune system to react to the virus, and since the virus attacks immune cells, they only make people more susceptable.

This reminds me an idea I heard for treating auto-immune deseases such as rhumatoid arthritus, lupis, and diabedies.  They have linked these diseases to T-cells as well.  They are studying methods of destroying abberent strains of T-cells, thus eliminating the disease.

This discovery shows a new way of thinking.  I lot more may be gained out of figuring out how to deal with the cells that host HIV than attacking the virus directly.

[marstone]

agree, we have a few researchers in my building who are working on how carcinagens get into the cells that make them cancerous.  Right now, the common way of thinking to identify carceinagens, and ways to kill the cells that turn cancerous. 

This new one is seeing how the material make it into the cells.  (the material they are looking at are lipid affinity proteins so logic says it shouldn't make it to the nucleaous of a cell but stop at the membrains).  So they are looking at the what in your body moves these things to where they cause problems and why it happens.  Thus you can stop cancer before it happens, or limit restarting of cancer after treatments.  It is a neat thing.

New ways of looking at treatment and prevention by getting the body to work the way it should and stop these things is much better then the brute force method of trying to kill a virus with massive drugs and such.