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Scientists Expose Weak DNA in HIV

Posted by CowboyNeal on from the go-for-the-throat dept.

Ace905 writes "The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases announced Thursday that they had discovered a very promising 'weak spot' in the HIV virus. The HIV virus, a progenitor to full blown AIDS has eluded all attempts at a vaccine since it was discovered sometime in the 1970's. The major problem with developing a vaccine initially was isolating the virus. Conventional viruses are often defeated with existing drugs, or after being tested against new compounds. HIV has been unique, and staggering in it's ability to resist all attempts at treatment by mutating its own genetic code. HIV is able to resist, with great effectiveness, any drug or combination drug-therapy that is used against it."

11 of 196 comments (clear)

  1. Ah, yes, the HIV virus... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Transmitted through the sharing of unsterilized ATM machines, IC circuits, LCD displays and PIN numbers, the HIV virus is a deadly threat to humanity.

  2. Easy... by Karganeth · · Score: 4, Funny

    Attack it's weak spot for massive damage.

  3. Title of the story is wrong by Gufry · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The story that is referenced in the BBC news article refers to the structure of an antibody binding the gp120 surface glycoprotein of HIV. This has nothing to do with 'weak' DNA. The reason why this is exciting is that the b12 region is relatively invariable, whereas most antibodies made against HIV bind variable regions of the surface glycoproteins that are prone to change from virus to virus as the genome is mutated. The majority of anti-HIV antibodies are therefore only useful against specific isolates and can be easily escaped by mutation. Antibodies against the b12 region are therefore potential vaccine candidates.

    1. Re:Title of the story is wrong by picob · · Score: 5, Informative

      Antibodies against the b12 region are therefore potential vaccine candidates

      b12 is a family of human antibodies that targets this viral protein gp120. gp120 is therefore the candidate for the vaccine. For vaccines we usually just inject viral protein(s) - as we would in this case - or a weak or dead form of the virus, and let the body make the antibodies (the b12 family in this case).

      The talk about 'region' in this article probably refers to a site on the RNA of the virus: this region, encoding protein gp120, is not much changed by mutations - HIV codes genes in RNA since it's a retrovirus.

      Also, since HIV targets the immune system, when someone has AIDS - the later stages of the disease in which the immune system is broken (targeted by HIV are T-cells) - vaccination may no longer work, since the immune system is no longer capable of producing antibodies, unless the T-cell count can be brought back to a level in which antibodies can be made.
  4. Fact check? by yellowstone · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The HIV virus [...] was discovered sometime in the 1970's
    The first case of AIDS was reported in 1981; the HIV virus was discovered in 1983 (reference) One day you kids will learn all those super-secret ways of finding stuff on teh intraweb...
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    150 Opening BINARY mode data connection for slashdot.sig (129323052 bytes).
    1. Re:Fact check? by DrKyle · · Score: 4, Informative
      Also:

      Scientists Expose Weak DNA in HIV

      This is about finding a stable surface protein on the surface of HIV which may be a good target for the production of an antigen which would elicit a stable immune response as a number of people have antibodies which target the same site. This has nothing to do with DNA, the submitter is just biologically illiterate.
    2. Re:Fact check? by elyons · · Score: 4, Informative

      Also, HIV is a retrovirus. For this family of viruses, their genome spends the majority of its time, and especially as an infectious particle, as RNA. It is only after infraction does its genome get replicated into DNA (through a process known as reverse transcription using a virally encoding RNA dependent DNA polymerase known as reverse transcriptase.) After being copied into DNA, the pro-virus is then inserted into the host's genome where RNA molecules are made (transcribed) to make viral proteins and full length copies of its genome for packaging into new infectious viral particles. This is a very import aspect of the virus' life-cycle and has many implications for some of the anti-retroviral therapies on the market.

  5. Not DNA, RNA by theshibboleth · · Score: 4, Informative

    HIV is a retrovirus so any weak spots would be found in the RNA, not the nonexistent DNA. Interestingly, the BBC decided to sidestep this issue by not mentioning any nucleic acids at all.

  6. Re:AIDS was discovered in 1981 by capebretonsux · · Score: 5, Informative

    You're partly right. It was in 1981 when the disease was discovered/recognized. It was 1982 when the CDC renamed the disease 'AIDS'. Before that, it was known as GRID. (Gay-Related Immune Deficiency) The causitive virus itself wasn't discovered until 1983, and wasn't renamed 'HIV' until 1986.

    (Splitting hairs, I know, but it's early and I haven't had my coffee yet...)

  7. You mean... by istartedi · · Score: 4, Funny

    You mean this vast plague upon mankind has a single point of failure? Wow! They really are close then. I suggest two possible courses of action from here: 1. Figure out how to plug a Powerbook into it, then type furiously. 2. Fly along the equator of the virus at top speed and fire into its exhaust port.

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    For all intensive purposes, "whom" is no longer a word. That begs the question, "who cares"?
  8. Re:The HIV virus has actually never been seen...so by Unc-70 · · Score: 4, Informative

    What do you mean 'HIV has never been seen...'? That's just not true

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    Ye have made your way from the worm to man, and much within you is still worm.