CELLS THAT FIGHT HIV CREATED

A latest experiment conducted on mice has opened up a novel way of closing a gateway to the AIDS virus,according to a study published on Friday.The gateway in question is called CCR5,a protein that helps the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) penetrate a cell,its first step before hijacking the cellular machinery and reproducing itself.

Around a decade ago,scientists discovered that people who had tiny gap in the genetic code for making CCR5 were surprisingly resistant to HIV infection and took more time to progress to AIDS.

This gene variant,known as CCR5 delta 32,results in smaller CCR5 proteins,which prevents most strains of HIV from infecting the cell.

Testing a theory,a group of scientists in the US took immature haematopoietic cells-which make immune and red blood cells-from mice.They modified some of the cells,using a brand new enzyme, (cutter) to delete the famous CCR delta 32 section.As a result,when these cells matured and divided,they lacked the key code for making normal CCR5.

Now the modified cells were reinjected back into the rodents,which were then exposed to HIV.Twelve weeks after infection,the animals had recovered their stock of immune T-cells and their levels of HIV were very low.But the mice who were denied the modified cells were highly infected and their immune systems weak.

The experiment was headed by Paula Cannon of the University of Southern California,Los Angeles.

There is no doubt that this is a significant milestone in the quest for manufacturing a drug not only for treating the affected people but also for exterminating this epidemic from the face of the earth for ever.And all of this ,in just one shot.