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In recognition of World AIDS Day 2008, we look back at articles published during the past year on Scientist Live relating to HIV and AIDS research from around the world.
Flushing HIV out: Any hunter will tell you that when your quarry goes into hiding, you have to flush it out to get a good shot at it. Such is the case with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
New HIV/AIDS vaccine trial: A phase 1 clinical trial to test a HIV/AIDS vaccine aims at overcoming the problem of preexisting immunity to common vaccine vectors.
Viral genome sequencing: Most emerging health threats are of zoonotic origin. For the overwhelming majority, their causative agents are RNA viruses which include but are not limited to HIV, SARS, Ebola, and Dengue.
New biomarker for HIV: An increase in the CD163+/CD16+ monocyte subset could be a biomarker for the progression of HIV disease, according to researchers.
When salmonella kills: Nearly half of all HIV-positive African adults who become infected with Salmonella die from what otherwise would be a seven-day bout of diarrhoea.
Promise in HIV switch: If the battle against HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, is a chess match, then new research gives new insight into one of the virus' most important moves.
Battling HIV: By outfitting immune-system killer cells with a new pair of genes, scientists transformed them into potent weapons that destroy cells infected with HIV.
Reservoirs for HIV: Shortly after an individual becomes infected with HIV, the virus can invade the brain and persist in this organ for life.
HIV breakthrough: A Canada-U.S. research team has solved a major genetic mystery: How a protein in some people's DNA guards them against killer immune diseases such as HIV.
Stopping HIV infection: Researchers have developed a new two-punch strategy against HIV and they have already successfully tested aspects of it in the laboratory.
Jumping genes fight HIV: Scientists have taken a significant step in understanding how retroviruses such as HIV can move between species and the biological mechanisms which make some monkeys immune.
New wave of drug-resistant HIV: A new wave of drug-resistant HIV is rising among among homosexual men in San Francisco that will continue over the next few years.
HIV persists in the gut: Doctors still have not been able to eradicate HIV from infected individuals who are receiving treatment, largely because of the persistence of HIV in viral reservoirs.
Higher polymerase activity of a human influenza virus: Influenza viruses replicate within the nucleus of infected cells. The virus-induced Raf/MEK/ERK (MAPK) signal cascade is crucial for efficient virus replication.
New cellular receptor for HIV: A cellular protein that helps guide immune cells to the gut has been newly identified as a target of HIV when the virus begins its assault on the body's immune system.
HIV drugs lead to heart problems: Two widely used HIV drugs, Didanosine and Abacavir, are associated with an increased risk of heart attack/the formation of blood clots in the heart.
Antiretroviral Therapy for Prevention of HIV Infection: The introduction of antiretroviral therapy profoundly changed the face of HIV infection by improving survival rates, but ART has equal potential for prevention.
HIV-1 infected macrophage-specific anti-viral therapy: Unlike CD4+ T cells, HIV-1 infected macrophages exhibit extended life span even upon stress, consistent with their in vivo role as long-lived HIV-1 reservoirs.
HIV Denial in the Internet Era: It may seem remarkable that, 23 years after the identification of the human immunodeficiency virus, there is still denial that the virus is the cause of acquired immune deficiency syndrome.