Research For AIDS / HIV

History of Aids

Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome. First began in 1981, was found by doctors in Los Angeles by healthy men developing pneumonia caused by the microorganism pneumicystics carinii. Researchers found that the young men were homosexuals, many suffering from other STI's.

The symptoms were found in other sections of the population who were not homosexuals, haemophiliacs and persons injecting drugs such as heroin.

Many of the injecting drug users did not sterilise their needles and shared them among other addicts. It became clear that AIDS was not only a sexual transmitted disease but it could also be transmitted through blood.

It was found that there could be a period of up to 10 years between being infected with the virus and developing the symptoms. For each person infected by AIDS there could be more than 100 others who were carrying the virus and developing the symptoms.

History of HIV

The Human Immunodeficiency Virus. A virus like HIV is 1/10, 000 of a millimetre in diameter and can only be seen with an electron microscope.

• HIV has been detected in people with AIDS
• People who develop AIDS are those who were HIV antibody positive or who have been shown to carrying the virus
• HIV has been shown to infect cells in the immune system so the role of HIV in causing AIDS makes biological sense.

The human body has a very efficient defence mechanism to protect against infections by viruses and other germs. The 'immune defence system' operates by the production of antibodies that destroy the virus. The unique feature of HIV, which makes it so dangerous, is that the part of our body that it attacks is cells vital to the body's immune defence.

There are two types of HIV, HIV1 and HIV2. While the chemical and genetic structure of HIV 2 is similar to HIV1, there are differences. However HIV2 is not as easily transmitted as HIV1 especially by mother and child.

 

Hubley, J. (2002) The AIDS Handbook. Third Edition edn, McMillan