HIV Cure Closer? Scientists Discovers New Way to Trace Dormant HIV Cells

For decades, curing HIV has remained a mystery—until now. Scientists at Mount Sinai have developed a method to track dormant HIV-infected cells, a crucial breakthrough that could lead to new treatments. Could this be the turning point in the fight against HIV? (1^✔ ✔Trusted Source
The reservoir of latent HIV

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Challenge of Curing HIV

HIV weakens the immune system by attacking infection-fighting cells. While antiretroviral therapy controls the virus, it doesn’t cure it. Mount Sinai researchers developed a method to genetically mark dormant HIV-infected cells, a key step toward potential treatments that could eliminate the virus.

Breakthrough Discovery

Researchers developed a novel tracing model to identify where HIV hides in immune cells. Using genetic profiling and a fluorescent switch in mice, they permanently marked and tracked dormant HIV-infected cells. Their analysis of 47,000 T cells identified nine distinct types that harbor inactive HIV, offering a new pathway for potential treatments (2^✔ ✔Trusted Source
The multifaceted nature of HIV latency

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Implications & Next Steps

New possibilities for treatments aimed at targeting dormant HIV-infected cells. has been opened through this research . Researchers are now focusing on reactivating these hidden cells to eliminate them completely. Their findings bring new hope for developing a potential cure for HIV.

References:

1. The reservoir of latent HIV - (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35967854/)
2. The multifaceted nature of HIV latency - (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32609095/)

Source-Medindia