New work on AIDS, trick HIV to destroy itself:

http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-09-hiv-molecule.html

Maybe this will be the end of AIDS.

Originally posted by sonhouse
http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-09-hiv-molecule.html

Maybe this will be the end of AIDS.

This is brilliant! The same strategy could be used to destroy other kinds of viruses i.e. make a drag molecule that mimics the receptor on the cell surface that the virus normally attaches to thus, when the virus makes physical contact with that drag molecule, makes the virus attach to it and 'think' it has attached to the cell thus stimulating it to release its contents onto this 'phantom cell' but actually spills its contents into oblivion!

This, however, by itself, would fall just short of a cure for AIDS because it would only effect fully-formed virus particles, not their genetic code hidden in infected cells that can persist there for a lifetime of those cells thus this would not by itself be quite the end of AIDS. Still, it must surely be one big step closer to a cure because it should be an effective treatment.

Originally posted by humy
This is brilliant! The same strategy could be used to destroy other kinds of viruses i.e. make a drag molecule that mimics the receptor on the cell surface that the virus normally attaches to thus, when the virus makes physical contact with that drag molecule, makes the virus attach to it and 'think' it has attached to the cell thus stimulating it to release it ...[text shortened]... it must surely be one big step closer to a cure because it should be an effective treatment.

Would you pass on the HIV virus even though you have no active viruses in your body? Would that genetic code pass on to the next generation or would it die when you died?

Originally posted by sonhouse
Would you pass on the HIV virus even though you have no active viruses in your body? Would that genetic code pass on to the next generation or would it die when you died?

I would guess, if there was no active virus i.e. viable mature virus particles outside the cells, the HIV would die when you die since, as far as I am aware, the virus doesn't infect and therefore doesn't insert its genome into the cells that make gamete cells nor the actual gamete cells i.e the egg and sperm cells.
But, personally, if I was HIV positive but taking a drag that should in theory keep the virus inactive, I certainly still wouldn't like to bet on that by having unprotected sex with a partner.

Originally posted by humy
This is brilliant! The same strategy could be used to destroy other kinds of viruses i.e. make a drag molecule that mimics the receptor on the cell surface that the virus normally attaches to thus, when the virus makes physical contact with that drag molecule, makes the virus attach to it and 'think' it has attached to the cell thus stimulating it to release it ...[text shortened]... ll, it must surely be one big step closer to a cure because it should be an effective treatment.

It's like a woman whose vagina has a little guillotine inside

Originally posted by AThousandYoung
It's like a woman whose vagina has a little guillotine inside

I really don't like the sound of this woman. Got a bad feeling about her.

Originally posted by humy
I really don't like the sound of this woman. Got a bad feeling about her.

But she is great at a briss....