Responce to the Questions asked by class mates about March 4th, 2010, Pesentation on: Treatment fo AIDS by Enzymatic Targets.

On March 4th I gave a 5 minute presentation on: The Treatment of AIDS. The class was kind enough to post some questions after the presentation was finished. I have looked up possible answers to the questions asked.


PLEASE NOTE THAT THE PowerPoint IS LINKED ABOVE IN PROTEIN BLOG.

The following passages are written in response to the questions asked and my results found pertaining to them:

Please note: I am no authority on this subject and if anybody has another view, please post a comment to the blog. I wish for this blog not only to be accurate, but to be representative of a variety of viewpoints.

* HIV is the beginning and AIDS is actively replicating disease phase?

Yes, I reversed these two distinctions during the presentation.

* Are the cells called CD 4 or is that another aspect?

That is another aspect, they are commonly referred to as CD 4, but that is an antigen they carry, not the cell itself the immune cell commonly called the Helper T cell would be more accurate.

"It turns out that CD4 isn't enough. Another protein called CCR5 is needed as well. CCR5, called a co-receptor because it works with CD4, is the door that opens to allow HIV to enter the cell." Stanford School of Medicine Blog:
http://www.thetech.org/genetics/news.php?id=13

* Is AIDS transmitted to Offspring Via the mother?

AIDS can cross the placental barrier, but not always.

AIDS does not appear to be readily passed to offspring genetically.

"If a pro-virus has been integrated into germ-line cells (eggs or sperm), it is passed on to the following generation (the offspring). This process has been occurring for many thousands of years in humans and these retro-viral sequences now account for approximately 8% of the human genome!"
http://www.biotrends.org/science_society/science_society_Science_Basics_HIVAIDS.htm

Targeted Cells:

The virus, entering through which various routes, act primarily on the following cells:

* Lymphoreticular system:
o CD4+ T-Helper cells
o Macrophages
o Monocytes
o B-lymphocytes
* Certain endothelial cells
* Central nervous system:
o Microglia of the nervous system
o Astrocytes
o Oligodendrocytes
o Neurones – indirectly by the action of cytokines and the gp-120
Source: The Wikipedia site had the above list of affected somatic cells.
Note: the gametic cells, responsible for sexual reproduction are not on the list.

* What are the treatments for AIDS?

HAART, or Highly Active Anti-retro viral Therapy is a cocktail taken multiple times per day by aids patients. This is the new front line medication for HIV/AIDS. This chemotherapy can halt the progression of the disease dramatically.

http://www.healthscout.com/ency/68/101/main.html

* Had I heard of a patient who is clear of HIV for 2 years post bone marrow transplant?

Yes, I believe that I had heard of a person in Germany who was immune and they did a graft to try and get the immune cells to multiply.


Wikipedia had this to say about the German patient:

"In Berlin, Germany, a 42-year-old leukemia patient infected with HIV for more than a decade was given an experimental transplant of bone marrow with cells that contained an unusual natural variant of the CCR5 cell-surface receptor. This CCR5-Δ32 variant has been shown to make some cells from people who are born with it resistant to infection with some strains of HIV. Almost two years after the transplant, and even after the patient reportedly stopped taking anti-retro viral medications, HIV has not been detected in the patient's blood.[126]"

Thanks again to my fellow students for your questions and especially for your corrections.

I look forward to the rest of the presentations!!!

MCB