Posts tagged antiviral compounds
Low Cholesterol Helps HIV Immunity
9 years ago
Low Cholesterol Helps HIV Immunity: A Link that can Prevent AIDS Progression
With current HIV therapies, those who are HIV-positive can live for decades without the infection progressing to AIDS. The antiretroviral treatments given today greatly improve the quality of life for many. In the past, once a person became infected with HIV, it would only take 1-2 years for the infection to take hold and overwhelm the immune system. High mortality rates were a direct result of this quick-moving process. After decades of meticulous study, research and record-keeping, certain links have been discovered that could help fight off the infection within the body, namely low cholesterol helps HIV immunity.
While the average person once infected with HIV would manifest with AIDS quickly if left untreated, there is a small percentage of the population that could avoid this. Some could go as long as 10 years or more without HIV progressing to AIDS. Through careful documentation, the link may have been discovered. The common denominator seems to be low levels of cholesterol in certain immune system cells. The interesting part is that this level has nothing to do with blood cholesterol levels. It appears to be an inherent trait and is present even before an infection takes place. Seeing as HIV needs cholesterol within the cells to invade and replicate, low cholesterol helps HIV immunity by greatly slowing down the virus. The result is better protection against HIV and prevention of AIDS.
While researchers are not exactly sure how this works or why some have this trait, they are hopeful. By investigating further, a new way to treat and prevent AIDS could come about in the near future. The premise that low cholesterol helps HIV immunity has taken over a decade to deduce. Thanks to the painstaking tasks of monitoring and documenting what was observed through the years, these results could mean even better treatment options for those who are HIV-positive and possibly even help in preventing an initial infection.
Silver Nanoparticle Vaginal Cream
9 years ago
by ADMIN
in HIV Therapy
Silver Nanoparticles Fight HIV
Researchers from Mexico that specialize in virology have discovered that silver nanoparticles have the ability to block the transmission of HIV-infected cells by working against the protein that facilitates the virus adhering to healthy cells. With this knowledge, specialists have created a silver nanoparticle vaginal cream that is designed to stop the transmission of HIV. Even though the mechanism of delivery is a cream intended for female use, it would in theory protect both sexual partners from the acquiring the virus. The cream starts working within 60 seconds of application and lasts for three days.
So far the silver nanoparticle vaginal cream has been tested in human tissue and there are plans to test it using mice and then move onto clinical trials. In the past, treatment for HIV has focused mainly on fighting the replication of the virus after it has hijacked the cell and its machinery. This new development, however, would prevent the virus from even entering the cell. The tests so far have proved that the cream is very effective in keeping the virus from adhering to the cell, but further testing is required to see what the possible side effects could be.
Irritation at times can make it easier for the virus to enter the tissue. Since topical applications can cause irritation, scientists added an anti-inflammatory agent to the cream. If this cream proves efficient and nontoxic in further trials, it could be used to protect people from other types of sexually transmitted diseases, such as the human papilloma virus (HPV), along with sexually transmitted bacterial infections.
The same team is also working on a kit to test HIV-positive blood for its reaction to antiretroviral drugs. These kits could help doctors prescribe the most effective treatment for each individual patient. In order to fully develop this kit, many more clinical trials are needed.
New Antivirals Show Promise
10 years ago
Researchers have pored over thousands of compounds to discover two that show great potential in providing antiviral properties. Study at the atomic level has revealed that they are able to fight a particular enzyme that is the key to eliminating viruses.
This rational approach to designing drugs for medicinal use may see more action due to the possible success of this research. More than 100,000 compounds were observed in an atomic manner, running through the national database of compounds to see which have the right properties for this particular application.
There is a tremendous need for antivirals today. Everything from HIV to the common cold will be affected by finding the right antiviral compounds to produce the next generation of medications. Antivirals can be used to prevent pneumonia or AIDS from cutting a life short prematurely, putting them at the top of the medical research industry’s to-do list.
There are over 50 different strains that cause adenoviruses; therefore it is difficult to find a single compound that is effective against all of them. Rather than being able to develop something preventative, it seems more viable to create drugs that can prevent the spread of diseases within the body. This has already been the approach with HIV up to this point.
Researchers were able to look into many compounds by creating a computation to check the proteins in each compound. This helps determine if the compound can perform certain tasks necessary for an antiviral. Of the 30 compounds that the calculations set aside, only two had the desired effect in lab tests. Still, finding these two compounds is a very promising discovery.
The current roadblock is the size of the two molecules. They are both too big to be used in developing drugs. The next step for researchers is to make things more compact so that they can get to work on drug development.
