Early intervention with new treatment enables durable control of HIV-like virus in monkeys
Now, new research from The Rockefeller University and the National Institutes of Health suggests that treatment with two anti-HIV antibodies immediately after infection enables the immune system to effectively control the virus, preventing its return for an extended period. "This form of therapy can induce potent immunity to HIV, allowing the host to control the infection," says Michel Nussenzweig, head of the Laboratory of Molecular Immunology and an Investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. "It works by taking advantage of the immune system's natural defenses, similar to what happens in some forms of cancer immunotherapy." The research was conducted in macaque monkeys, using a model of HIV infection called simian-human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV). Although this model does not precisely mimic human HIV infection, the findings suggest that immunotherapy should be explored as a way of controlling the virus and boosting an immune response that...
