Western University researchers are one step closer to discovering “an effective and affordable targeted treatment strategy for the treatment of HIV,” the school said.
The treatment is HIV virus-like particles (HLPs). HLPs are dead HIV particles that house a comprehensive set of HIV proteins that boost the immune response without infecting humans.
Professor Western said that when compared to other potential treatments, HLP is an affordable biological therapy that can be administered intramuscularly, similar to the seasonal influenza vaccine.
“It took 10 years to develop this HIV treatment, but with strong support from collaborators in the United States, Canada, and Uganda, we observed the remarkable ability of HLP to expel the last remnants of HIV-1. . We hope to have affordable treatments for everyone,” said Eric Ertz, professor at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry and Canada Research Chair in HIV Pathogenesis and Viral Control. “Living an HIV-free life is a goal for the 39 million people living with HIV. Ending the HIV pandemic by 2030 is also a priority for the United Nations and WHO.”
HIV is a retrovirus that attacks the body’s immune system and, if left untreated, can cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).
This virus weakens a person’s immune system by destroying certain white blood cells that help the immune system fight infections.
About 95 percent of people living with HIV have chronic HIV infection, where the virus slowly destroys the patient’s immune system.
