What does the discovery of a new HIV strain mean for a pandemic?

February 24, 2020 / Biovalley BIOON / -- scientists have discovered a very rare new HIV strain for the first time in nearly 20 years This news has quickly become the headlines around the world The biggest question is, what does this discovery mean for the overall response to the HIV epidemic? Scientists from Abbott and other institutions published the research findings in the International Journal Journal of acquired immune immunity syndrome This new subtype of HIV virus is the first one discovered by scientists since they first formulated the guidelines for the classification of new HIV strains in 2000 There are many different subtypes of HIV, and like other viruses, it changes over time This new strain is an important discovery, but it does not mean a new public health threat; it rarely occurs and can be effectively treated with existing antiretroviral drugs; since antiretroviral drugs are aimed at the characteristics of HIV prevalent in all different subtypes, this new discovery will not affect the treatment, and as long as no resistance occurs Drug mutations, antiretroviral drugs are still effective The essence of this discovery is that it enhances scientists' understanding of human immunodeficiency virus and its evolutionary complexity, and adds many details to the already comprehensive virus image A comprehensive and in-depth study of HIV can ensure that HIV detection methods can effectively detect the virus, and it is also expected to accelerate the development of related vaccines by scientists Photo source: groundup.org.za virus strain At present, HIV mainly includes two types, namely, HIV-1 and HIV-2 HIV-1 is the most common, HIV-2 is not very common, and the number of people infected is relatively small HIV-1 strains can be classified into four subgroups m, N, O and P subgroup m is the main cause of global HIV epidemic, which accounts for about 95% of all infections in the world The newly found HIV strain is also a part (Branch) of subtype m, researchers It was labeled as l subtype The epidemic virus found in South Africa is a subtype of branch C, and a candidate HIV vaccine method that is currently being studied in South Africa has also been designed to be effective against subtype C At present, researchers do not know whether this vaccine strategy can also be applied to areas where different epidemic strains exist, such as subtype B in the United States The process of identifying any new virus strain can be lengthy Before announcing a new virus subtype, researchers need to identify three independent cases The first two cases of the new virus were found in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1983 and 1990, and the third in 2001 Therefore, although scientists have known about this virus subtype for 18 years However, the whole genome of the virus subtype needs to be tested to confirm There is no such technology before to help researchers to confirm the virus subtype At present, the available genome sequencing technology can help scientists to construct the whole virus genome at a faster speed and lower cost than before In order to successfully use this new generation of technology, researchers must apply the new technology to focus on the collection of virus in samples, so that they can complete the genome sequencing and analysis From a scientific point of view, this discovery can help researchers lead virus research In addition, the role of new technology in identifying virus strains can also remind scientists how far they have gone and whether they can effectively carry out virus related research Photo source: University of capital town Now scientists have made some great progress in the fight against HIV in the treatment, and the life span of patients has also been significantly extended UNAIDS estimates that the number of new HIV infections dropped from 2.1 million in 2010 to 1.7 million in 2017, down by 16% Undoubtedly, one of the most promising achievements of researchers is to reduce the global mother to child transmission The view that HIV is no longer an emergency threat is harmful to the current scientists and the relevant general manager Gong of the community We still need to continue to promote the campaign of effective prevention of HIV infection and continue to fight against HIV The HIV epidemic situation is not over, and researchers should be vigilant at all times, especially when the reduction rate is stagnant The final solution for researchers is to develop effective therapeutic and preventive vaccines, which are from South Africa The research of the trial network is currently carrying out the research of HIV preventive vaccine test The researchers hope to develop an effective HIV vaccine in the future, but before that, we still need to focus on expanding effective treatment and preventive tools to effectively resist the HIV epidemic Reference materials: [1] HIV industries and types [2] global HIV AIDS statistics [3] what the discovery of a new HIV strain means for the panel by Linda Gail Bekker, the conversation