A 44-Year old man, undergoing a clinical trial for ART, has no sign of HIV in his blood, after undergoing the process. The trial being undertaken by researchers from the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial College, University College London and King’s College, have been studying and exploring the real possibility of curing HIV.
Mark Samuels, the MD of NIH Research Office for Clinical Research Infrastructure said, “This is one of the first serious attempts at a full cure for HIV. “Current treatment include anti-retroviral therapies (ART), target the process of the HIV but they cannot spot dormant infected T-cells.
Professor Sarah Fidler, a consultant physician at Imperial College, added: “This therapy is specifically designed to clear the body of all HIV viruses, including dormant ones. It has worked in the laboratory and there is good evidence it will work in humans too, but we must stress we are still a long way from any actual therapy.
The new therapy works in two stages. Firstly, a vaccine helps the body recognise the HIV-infected cells so it can clear them out. Secondly, a new drug called Vorinostat activates the dormant T-cells so they can be spotted by the immune system.
However, early tests show that the first patient has no trace of the virus in his blood- but it’s still too early to call this a cure.
By: Archa Dave
