A new method of HIV research in Germany to clear

German researchers February 22 reported that they are developing a new approach is expected to help patients remove HIV from the body. Currently animal experiments have been successful.

HIV and other retroviruses, when breeding their genetic material will be integrated into the genome of the human host to replicate. Although antiretroviral therapy can effectively inhibit the reproduction of HIV, but the virus can not eradicate this type of integration. Therefore, the virus can lie dormant dormant during treatment, discontinuation of treatment once, again to start copying.

Dresden University of Technology said a press release the same day, the school in cooperation with the Heinrich Pater Hamburg Institute researchers, the use of an important tool for protein engineered "directed molecular evolution" developed a method called Brec1 recombinase. Cell specimens and test tubes in mice show that the recombinase can accurately identify the location of more than 90% of common clinical HIV strains, and can safely and accurately in the genome of infected cells completely "cut off" integrated provirus.

The so-called provirus, is present in the host chromosome, potential virus genome. Further experiments showed that this method does not destroy the function of the host cell and the normal gene. After the original virus is cleared by HIV genetic material interference and malfunction of the immune system is expected to return to normal.

The researchers say that this method is expected to bring fundamental changes to HIV treatment, so completely cure possible. In the current basis of animal experiments, the researchers have been granted preliminary clinical trials in the next body of AIDS patients.