A.I.D.S. Virus Variants May Provide Immunity (Press, 30 July 1986)

Researchers have discovered that infection with one strain of the AIDS virus may provide protection against other strains, potentially aiding vaccine development. A study published in the journal "Science" highlighted findings from a team at the University of Alabama Medical Centre, which included collaborations with several other institutions. It was noted that infected homosexual men, who often have multiple exposures to different variants of the virus, typically carry only one strain or closely related variants. This finding suggests that once an individual is infected with one AIDS strain, they may be immune to other strains. Dr George Shaw, one of the researchers, commented that this protective mechanism is unlikely to stem from traditional viral immunity, wherein an infected cell loses its capacity for other strains to invade. Surprisingly, many individuals with chronic AIDS infection maintain normal levels of uninfected white blood cells, which should be vulnerable to new infections. The team is exploring reasons behind the limited infection scope, suggesting it might be due to an immune response triggered after initial infection, or potentially due to a non-immunologic factor. They posited that if this protective factor could be identified, it might serve as a preventive measure against AIDS. Additionally, Dr Shaw referenced earlier research from Harvard which discovered a variant called HTLV-4 in West Africa, which appears not to cause disease. There is speculation that this variant might offer protection against the strains that do cause AIDS. The researchers’ study also examined the rapid mutation of the AIDS virus. Samples from patients over periods as long as two years indicated that while the virus mutates quickly, it does not evolve directly from one version to another. Instead, multiple versions can exist in a patient simultaneously, adapting in parallel. This mutation rate was found to be significantly higher than that of other similar RNA viruses, such as influenza, which necessitates frequent updates to vaccines. Despite the rapid genetic changes that make it challenging to pinpoint stable targets for vaccines, the researchers identified certain conserved regions that appear across most variants. These regions could potentially be the basis for future treatments and preventative measures against AIDS. Overall, the study sheds light on the complexities of AIDS virus infection and suggests avenues for further research into protective mechanisms and vaccine development.

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