Fight Against HIV With A Vaginal Cream

Disorders Cure

oi-Staff

By Staff

Wednesday, May 6, 2009, 17:59

AIDS is one of the incurable deadliest diseases in the present day century. There are many medical inventions that claim to prevent the transmission of HIV virus. The latest in the list is a new vaginal cream containing a reawakened protein could someday prevent the transfer of the deadly virus.

A dormant gene in human beings can be revived into produce retrocyclin—a protein that resists HIV. The drugs called aminoglycosides can trigger the production of the sleeping protein expressed by the retrocyclin gene. The concern is that even when the same gene exists in humans, but because of a mutation, it no longer produces the protein.

The safety and effectiveness of this approach is still under consideration. Similar retrocyclin proteins found in early primates appeared to prevent HIV infections in cell cultures. Restoring the production of retrocyclins prevents HIV entry.

The application of aminoglycoside antibiotics to vaginal tissues and cervical cells stimulates those cells and tissues to produce retrocyclins on their own. The aminoglycoside antibiotics could be used in a cream or gel format that could someday be a simple way to prevent the transmission of HIV from men to women.

Researchers at the University of Central Florida in Orlando conducted this study.