Existing HIV medications suppress the virus, but do not completely eradicate it.
Researchers have taken a promising step toward an HIV cure using CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats), a powerful gene-editing technology. This approach involves using CRISPR, similar to molecular scissors, to cut HIV's DNA from infected cells, according to the BBC.
Although existing treatments suppress HIV, they cannot eliminate it completely. This new research, while still in its early stages, offers hope for complete eradication of the virus, the news source said.
The team from the University of Amsterdam presented their findings as a summary at a medical conference. They emphasize that this is a preliminary concept and will not immediately translate into a cure. Further research is needed to ensure safety and effectiveness.
Experts such as Dr James Dixon, associate professor of stem cell and gene therapy technologies at the University of Nottingham, agree that a full review of the research is necessary.
“This is an interesting study that has used gene editing technology to remove the permanent nature of how HIV inserts and retains its genome in that of patient cells. Much more work will be needed to show that the results of these cell tests can This can be done throughout the body for future therapies. As this is not peer-reviewed, it will be important to assess the specific data that confirms the findings, and much more development will be needed before this can have an impact on people living with HIV,” said Dr Dixon.
Dr. Jonathan Stoye, Senior Group Leader and Head of the Retrovirus-Host Interactions Laboratory, Francis Crick Institute, said: “The idea of a functional cure for AIDS using CRISPR-Cas9 technology to clear the body of HIV-1 has a enormous attraction. groups are working in this area, and at least one company, Excision BioTherapeutics, has already begun clinical trials in a small number of HIV-1 infected individuals.