Drug News Can bone marrow transplant cure AIDS?
By Jimmy Downs
Nov 13, 2008 - 11:24:27 AM
If you like the article, could you please do us a favor? Just tell Google News Services that you like foodconsumer.org included in Google News Services. Inclusion in googlenewsservices means many more people can read articles like this. Thanks.
------
Thursday November 13, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) -- Bone
marrow transplant has gotten rid of HIV virus and possibly leukemia as well in
an American who lives in Berlin, BBC News reported.
Doctors in Germany said that the bone marrow came from a
donor who happened to have a genetic resistance to the virus.
The 42-year-old man suffered both leukemia and HIV.
Ever since he received the transplant at
Berlin's Charite clinic two years ago, he had been free of HIV virus as tests
on the man's bone marrow, blood and other organ tissues had been all clear.
The mutated gene of concern, called Delta 32, prevents HIV
from attaching itself to cells by blocking a receptor called CCR5,
injuryboard.com reported.
Experts cautioned that this may be an exceptional case
and further investigation is needed to determine exactly what helped clear HIV
virus in the patient.
Even if it is confirmed that the bone marrow with a
genetic mutation was responsible for the miracle, Professor Rodolf Tauber,
Berlin's Charite clinic was cited by BBC as saying that this
"therapy" is only for a very few lucky HIV patients.
For one thing, the mutation is found only in one out of
every 1000 Europeans and Americans. It is not easy to find matched bone marrow
with the mutation.
HIV affects most people in Africa where few people could
afford the expensive procedure.
Even if
a few may afford it, studies showed 20 to 30 percent of patients could not
survive from the treatment which uses high doses of radiation and drugs to kill
the infected bone marrow cells and disable his immune system
Even if the patient would not die from the bone marrow
transplant, he would have to suffer a great deal of pain.
However, the case report did suggest that gene therapy
could be possible in the future for HIV patients.
Professor Andrew Sewell, University of
Cardiff, was cited by BBC as saying gene therapy to knock out the mutation of the
key CCR5 receptor could be possible as a future treatment.