Yesterday it was all about luring viruses into trap protocells. Welp, today it's all about treating/preventing HIV infection by beefing up the blood cells.
Also it appears that while the metaphor for other viruses is apparently bees that can only sting you once, the metaphor for HIV is apparently a seemingly friendly Avon salesperson who asks to enter but is actually a vampire and rips your cell's head off.
The article for today explains that a new genetic treatment takes typically infected cells (juicy-looking unsuspecting citizens who open their doors at the stroke of midnight), and alters them so that the means by which HIV usually enters them is no longer available, via causing it to remove the gene for it (convinces said citizen to take down the whole door and build a wall where it used to be). Then, when HIV comes a-knockin', it can't be let in. Trials seem to be a success, with the cells multiplying in the body a year later (...then a whole neighborhood was built with no doors and the HIV vampire starved to death?).
Hey, this one-story-a-day thing and wrapup-on-the-weekend thing seems to be working out a lot better for me. I'm even getting stories written early, and that's never happened before! Let me know what you guys think!
-Miss Mouse
References and Links:
Beefy Blood Cells Keepin' Out HIV
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20928023.300-genetic-treatment-closes-door-on-hiv.html
Showing posts with label HIV. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HIV. Show all posts
Friday, March 4, 2011
Friday, December 17, 2010
17 December 2010 - HIV
I can't do a full blog post today (which counts as Thursday's...sorry if my posts are late, being nocturnal messes with your days a bit), but I can do a partial one. I'm packing up and getting ready to go out of state on Saturday, so I've missed a lot on Twitter and don't have a bunch of time to blog.
I'll be heading out Saturday, and I'm not yet sure if I'll be blogging there or not. It kind of just depends on how much time I have and how frustrated I get trying to type out an entire post with links in my cell phone (no internet where I'm headed). Perhaps just blurbs when something particularly interesting finds its way to my screen. I WILL still tweet articles, though, and I'll be back in town on the 28th or 29th.
The biggest thing I've seen since last post was a story about a man who is tentatively being announced as cured of HIV. He underwent a bone marrow transplant four years ago from someone with a genetic immunity (resistance?) to the virus. Since then, his tissues have been tested for the virus and he's been clear so far. The two big concerns about his case are first, that it's tough to really be sure he's done with HIV. The virus can hide out undetected, occurring years down the road. The second concern is that this treatment is not practical to be performed on anyone else. Bone marrow transplants are dangerous and not approved for HIV, but if it proved anything, it proved that the gene can make a difference in an already-infected individual. The case points to gene therapy in future research.
Here's the article at Reuters.
Heh, the comments are kind of amazing:
I'll be heading out Saturday, and I'm not yet sure if I'll be blogging there or not. It kind of just depends on how much time I have and how frustrated I get trying to type out an entire post with links in my cell phone (no internet where I'm headed). Perhaps just blurbs when something particularly interesting finds its way to my screen. I WILL still tweet articles, though, and I'll be back in town on the 28th or 29th.
The biggest thing I've seen since last post was a story about a man who is tentatively being announced as cured of HIV. He underwent a bone marrow transplant four years ago from someone with a genetic immunity (resistance?) to the virus. Since then, his tissues have been tested for the virus and he's been clear so far. The two big concerns about his case are first, that it's tough to really be sure he's done with HIV. The virus can hide out undetected, occurring years down the road. The second concern is that this treatment is not practical to be performed on anyone else. Bone marrow transplants are dangerous and not approved for HIV, but if it proved anything, it proved that the gene can make a difference in an already-infected individual. The case points to gene therapy in future research.
Here's the article at Reuters.
Heh, the comments are kind of amazing:
"If we stop paying “research scientists?” we may just find the correct cure. If you cannot do the job, get another source of income. that goes for all research institutes."
Nice!
Oh, of course! *doh!* If we don't PAY them, an answer will just fall into our laps! Geniuses with expensive degrees work for free! XD I don't see you working OT in a lab, buddy.
Okay okay, enough with the sarcasm. HIV has become sort of the ultimate task over the years, so it's nice to see a mark of progress amongst the reports of leads. Suspicious comments or no. Have a great one, and I'll see you guys sooner/later!
Later gators,
-Miss Mouse
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Hey!
It's definitely been a long time, huh? I was going crazy, I couldn't help it anymore, I had to get back to Science...so here I am!
To start us off tonight, Scientists from a group called NORDynamIC (wow.) have published a paper regarding depression and its effect on treatment for Hepatitis C (and vice versa). The combination of treatments used for chronic HCV can sometimes result in major depression, which was tested via Major Depression Inventory tests, or MDIs. Results showed that of 306 previously non-depressed HCV patients (determined with MDIs), 114 developed major depression over the course of treatment. This would sometimes result in early termination of treatment and lead to lower success rates. Also noted in the study was that a mere 1/3 of those depressed patients were correctly diagnosed for the depression in routine examinations. No fun! A separate U.S. study highlighted lower productivity and higher health benefit costs in chronic HCV-affected employees, as well. To read more, check out the link at the bottom of the post.
Next, in case you haven't heard, a new topical gel has been presented as a preventative for HIV infection in women whose partners do not use protection. The vaginal gel, called tenofovir, comes with a 39% lower chance of infection, and it turns out it also protects against herpesvirus (HSV-2) by 51%! Apparently, HSV-2 infection can increase the chances of contracting HIV, so they're pretty impressive results! I'm not sure I'd rely on those numbers if I didn't have to, but it's absolutely a step in the right direction!
Last for today, a new study of Down's Syndrome mice has taken our knowledge of the matter a step further. According to the article, when an embryonic brain is developing it requires a certain balance of excitatory and inhibitory neurons. When there are more of chromosome 21's genes Olig1 and Olig2 in Down's Syndrome mice, significantly more inhibitory neurons are produced, throwing the brain's development out of balance. When the two genes were genetically engineered to appear only in their normal quantities...voila! Normal balance! Very cool. Since people have the same two genes, this study will likely have a very large impact on the understanding and future treatment of Down's Syndrome.
Hopefully I'll see you here again on Thursday and be back in the normal swing of things! :)
-Miss Mouse
Hopefully I'll see you here again on Thursday and be back in the normal swing of things! :)
-Miss Mouse
References and Links:
Sad Hepatitis C Patients
HIV and Herpes Goo
Monday, April 5, 2010
4 April 2010 - Massive Quarks, Nanoprobing, HIV, Space, and Smelly Ants
Happy Easter, if that's your thing ;)
A lot happened between Thursday and today - it was pretty tough to pick what to write about!
First, a group of researchers have recently nailed down the mass of up and down quarks to a 1.5% certainty - a big jump from the previous 30%! Using a simulation technique called lattice quantum chromodynamics (QCD), they have narrowed down the mass of the up quark to 2.01 MeV give or take 0.14 MeV, and the down quark to 4.79 +/- 0.16 MeV. Not only is this a pretty impressive accomplishment, it should be very helpful information for current research - especially if it can help the fellows over at the LHC. It does still need to be challenged and replicated, but it's still pretty exciting! For details about how they did it, check out the link at the bottom of this post.
Next, in the ever-growing world of nano, a new probe has been created capable of incorporating itself into cells without damaging them. Mimicking transmembrane proteins, the tip of the probe is coated with two chromium layers with a gold layer in between them, to line up with the hydrophilic and hydrophobic sections of the cell's membrane. Before, if you wanted to study the internal workings of a cell via probe, you would have to puncture a hole in it for the probe and it would die within a couple of hours. This 600 nm long silicon probe, however, may be able to remain in place without disturbing a cell for potentially up to a week. The developers are currently testing it for future uses including medicine delivery, observing signals within and between cells, and monitor therapy responses.
Over at the California Institute of Technology, scientists have discovered key information about a specific protein on the surface of a common variety of HIV. Called gp120, the protein is commonly utilized in attempts to create vaccines for the virus. Not only was the protein's structure verified in their experimentation, but they also noticed that an antibody called 21c interacting with the protein on the HIV envelope also simultaneously bound with a CD4 receptor on a T-cell - meaning it's marking the T-cell to get killed as well as the virus. This is called polyreactivity, and it raises many questions about the use of that antibody and ones like it in the future. Definitely not what they expected, just looking for the structure of the gp120 protein!
Now, news in space! Blasting off Friday and docking Sunday, the Russian Soyuz carried one US and two Russian astronauts to the International Space Station for a half year visit. Following them Monday will be 8 tons of supplies aboard the Discovery, including coolant and equipment for scientific studies. There was a problem noted with a valve in one of the rockets, but it's been determined to not pose a major risk to the flight. NASA has only four more flights planned.
Now, news in space! Blasting off Friday and docking Sunday, the Russian Soyuz carried one US and two Russian astronauts to the International Space Station for a half year visit. Following them Monday will be 8 tons of supplies aboard the Discovery, including coolant and equipment for scientific studies. There was a problem noted with a valve in one of the rockets, but it's been determined to not pose a major risk to the flight. NASA has only four more flights planned.
Lastly, "odorous" house ants, Tapinoma sessile, are known to take up residence in acorns in the woods of North America and remain in small groups of 50-100 ants. However, researchers have noticed that when these ants live in urban settings, they form gigantic colonies of more than 5 million ants and interfere with the growth of other colonies. Scientists are going to start looking toward their genetics for an answer to why the drastic shift.
Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone had a great weekend! See you Tuesday!
-Miss Mouse
References and Links:
Quarks
http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2010/04/mass-of-the-common-quark-finally.html
Nanoprobe
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-04/stealthy-nanoprobe-slips-seamlessly-cell-walls
HIV Protein and Antibodies
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100402154919.htm
Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone had a great weekend! See you Tuesday!
-Miss Mouse
References and Links:
Quarks
http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2010/04/mass-of-the-common-quark-finally.html
Nanoprobe
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-04/stealthy-nanoprobe-slips-seamlessly-cell-walls
HIV Protein and Antibodies
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100402154919.htm
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