“Designer Protain blocks all know Strains of HIV.” An article by Davis McNamee written on 18th February 2015 on the Journal Nature
Internet Link: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/289611.php
The exceeding revealed article parleys about new drug candidate that researchers at the Scripps Research Institute in Jupiter have developed. The researchers asserted to have created a drug candidate that is effective forming a foundation of vaccine alternative.
Introduction
Vaccines are molded from antibodies, which form a coat that prevent it from destroying the healthy cells in the body. Farzan, the chief researcher argued that antibodies failed to inhibit a great number of HIV strains. As a replacement for antibodies, they opted to use a designer protein that they thought could be effective against all strains of HIV. The journal, Nature, published the outcomes, and it could be deduced that the engineered protactinium from the previous research on CCR5 CO-receptor was able to block HIV1 and HIV2 strains. Equally, it could be construed that their variants that are hard to block.
The article alike brings into light critical points in the area of research. It alludes that the original work was on CCR5 that most researchers were skeptical about. Conversely, it was thought to be interesting and had no therapeutic potential. The CCR5- a chemo-kine receptor whose defects in structure caused by genetic mutation cause the progression of AIDS to be slowed as well as prevented. It enables the antibodies to have a direct mimic of co-receptor CCR5 (chemokine receptor) that blocks the virus from invading new host cells. The rate of production of the co-receptors was noted to be higher than the transmission rate of HIV in human beings.
The research team used the work on CCR5 a departure point from where they designed a protein that imitates the receptor meant to prevent the virus from entering the host cell by concurrently binding itself on the two surfaces. The first author Mathew Gardner articulated that most parts were touched when the antibodies mimicked the receptor. Based on that, they were able to establish a caricaturist of the receptors devoid of sundry paths that the virus could escape increasing chances for them to be destroyed.
The second thing that the researchers did was to develop a delivery mechanism of the drug candidate. That is a transport pathway of the drug candidate designed and engineered from adeno-associated virus. It denotes a tiny hypo-allergic virus that has no disease-causing capabilities. The adeno-associated virus converts the cells into factories the produce enough protein that can last for quite a long time.
Summary
The exceeding research is without a doubt significant owing to the fact that it will significantly revolutionize the medical and health industry. That would be more significant if the tests could be conducted on humans, and prove to be effective. The virus that causes AIDS, "Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome" is one of the most serious health challenge in recent times. The development of a vaccine will contribute immensely to the achievement of the zero HIV infections, zero discrimination, and zero AIDS-related deaths. It is over thirty years after the discovery of the virus and researchers are still many years ahead of discovering a vaccine. Its discovery will undoubtedly influence the pharmaceutical industry. Correspondingly, the vaccine production capabilities will experience a major growth in the economy. That will unquestionably make that world a better place to live in although some may argue that it may lead to a decline in morality.
Based on the article, it is my view that the vaccine will be of preventive importance when it is fully developed even though it cannot be used as a therapeutic immunogen. Its usage would be in the prevention of a new recombinant strain of HIV. Nevertheless, it cannot be thought that the research is unexploited owing to the fact that it is incremental and serendipitous. Thus, I would acclaim it to all researchers who desire to use it to build on the co-receptor CCR5.
Work Cited
McNamee, David . "Designer protein 'blocks all known strains of HIV." Media news today. Medilexicon, Intl., 18 Feb. 2015. Web. 2 Jul. 2015. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/289611.php>.
