HIV & AIDS

Transmission of HIV
Sharing needles whether used illegally for drugs or legally Unprotected sex the virus can enter the bloodstream of a partner through breaks in the skin or lesions caused by other infections (usually other STIs). Infection can also occur via oral sex, though this is rare. Direct blood-to-blood transfer through cuts and grazes. Maternal transmission from mother to unborn child or in breast milk. Risk occurs in last few weeks of pregnancy, mostly around the birth itself, when mingling of infant and maternal blood is likely to happen.

AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

Is caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus, HIV. The virus infects and gradually destroys the cells in the body that usually combat infections leaving the body susceptible to diseases it would normally be able to fight. Without treatment, the immune system will become too weak to fight off illness and a person with HIV may develop rare infections or cancers. When these are particularly serious, the person is said to have AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome).
glycoprotein Lipid bilayer layer of viral protein mRNA 2 copies Capsid made up of protein units

} HIV Envelope derived from host cell membrane

Viral proteins e.g. Reverse transcriptase and integrase

How HIV Invades T Helper Cells

http://www.treathivnow.com/hiv-facts/hivbasics

The course of the disease AIDS

AIDS doesnt always follow HIV. There are several stages in the course of the disease once someone is infected, and this depends on several factors. For example... Health of the host before infection Genetic resistance of host to infection Quality of hosts immune response to initial infection Their lifestyle and nutrition The availability of expensive and complicated treatment to them

o HIV antibodies appear in the blood after 3-12 weeks. o Infected person may experience symptoms such as fever, sweats, headache, sore throat and swollen lymph nodes, or they may have no symptoms. o There is rapid replication of the virus and loss of T helper cells. o After a few weeks, infected T helper cells are recognised and then destroyed by T killer cells this greatly reduces the rate of virus replication but doesnt totally eliminate it.

o Virus continues to reproduce rapidly but numbers are kept in check by immune system. o There may be no symptoms during this phase, but there can be an increasing tendency to suffer colds or other infections, which are slow to go away. o Dormant diseases like shingles and TB can reactivate. o Chronic phase can last many years, especially in fit young people who lead healthy lifestyles combined with drug treatment.

o Eventually, the increased number of viruses in circulation (viral load) and a declining number of T helper cells indicates the onset of AIDS, the disease phase. o During this phase, the decrease in number of T helper cells leaves the immune system vulnerable to other diseases.

Treating AIDS
There is no treatment to get rid of HIV, but there are drugs available that reduce the production of more viruses. These are known as antiretroviral drugs. There are 2 main types: Reverse transcriptase inhibitors which prevent the viral RNA from making DNA for integration into the hosts genome. Protease inhibitors which inhibit the proteases that catalyse the cutting of larger proteins into small polypeptides for use in the construction of new viruses.