HIV may have returned in 'cured' patient: scientists

June 13, 2012 in HIV & AIDS

An American man whose HIV seemed to disappear after a blood marrow transplant for leukemia may be showing new hints of the disease, sparking debate over whether a cure was really achieved.

Scientists disagree over the latest findings on Timothy Brown, also known as the "Berlin patient," presented at a conference in Spain last week, according to a report in the journal Science's ScienceInsider blog.

Brown was given in 2006 that appeared to eradicate the from his body, leading his doctors to declare a "cure of has been achieved" in the peer-reviewed journal Blood in 2010.

The transplants came from a donor with an unusual genetic mutation that is naturally resistant to HIV. About one in 100 people have this mutation which prevents the molecule CCR5 from appearing on the .

The latest debate arose after virologist Steven Yukl of the University of California, San Francisco, gave a talk on June 8 at the International Workshop on HIV & Hepatitis Virus.

Yukl "highlighted the difficulties that they and several labs they collaborated with have had determining if Brown truly had eradicated the virus from his body," said the ScienceInsider report.

"There are some signals of the virus and we don't know if they are real or contamination, and, at this point, we can't say for sure whether there's been complete eradication of HIV," Yukl was quoted as saying by ScienceInsider.

"The point of the presentation was to raise the question of how do we define a cure and, at this level of detection, how do we know the signal is real?"

However, some scientists interpreted the presentation to mean that a cure was not actually achieved, and that Brown may even have been re-infected with the virus that causes AIDS.

Alain Lafeuillade of the General Hospital in Toulon, France, issued a press release that described how Yukl and colleagues "challenged these results as they showed persistence of low levels of HIV viremia in this patient, and HIV DNA in his rectal cells."

He noted that "these HIV strains were found to be different from those initially present in this patient back in 2006, and different from each other."

While that could mean the HIV has "evolved and persist(ed) over the last 5 years, these data also raise the possibility that the patient has been re-infected," Lafeuillade wrote.

"More studies are in progress to know if this seronegative HIV individual can infect other subjects if he has unsafe sex," he concluded.

Yukl, quoted by ScienceInsider, said Lafeuillade misinterpreted the presentation.

""We weren't trying to say HIV was still there or he hadn't been cured," he said, noting the talk centered on how to interpret very sensitive test results on Brown's blood cells, plasma and rectal tissue.

One of his collaborators, Douglas Richman of the University of California, San Diego, said he believes researchers have picked up contaminants.

"If you do enough cycles of PCR (polymerase chain reaction), you can get a signal in water for pink elephants," Richman was quoted as saying.

Journal reference: Blood search and more info website

(c) 2012 AFP

5 /5 (1 vote)  

Rank 5 /5 (1 vote)
Related Stories
Relevant PhysicsForums posts

More news stories

AIDS science at 30: 'Cure' now part of lexicon

Big names in medicine are set to give an upbeat assessment of the war on AIDS on Tuesday, 30 years after French researchers identified the virus that causes the disease.

HIV & AIDS created 17 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Peer-referral programs can increase HIV-testing in emergency departments

Researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) have found that incorporating a peer-referral program for HIV testing into emergency departments can reach new groups of high-risk patients and brings more patients into the ...

HIV & AIDS created May 17, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

HIV no barrier to getting liver transplant, study finds

(HealthDay)—Liver transplants to treat a common type of liver cancer are a viable option for people infected with HIV, according to new research.

HIV & AIDS created May 17, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Twin epidemics: HIV and Hepatitis C in the urban Northeast

A new Yale study looks at the scope and consequences of a burgeoning health problem in the cities of the U.S. Northeast: concurrent infection with both HIV and Hepatitis C (HCV). The study appears online ...

HIV & AIDS created May 17, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Russia has 'no anti-AIDS strategy', official says

There is no government strategy to fight the spread of AIDS in Russia, where the number of deaths caused by the disease continues to grow, a senior healthcare official said on Thursday.

HIV & AIDS created May 16, 2013 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0


New research identifies risks, interventions for children's GI health

An increasing number of U.S. children are experiencing gastrointestinal issues that require interventions to resolve, according to research presented at Digestive Disease Week (DDW).

US psychiatry gets makeover in new manual

The latest makeover to a massive psychiatric tome honored by some, reviled by others and even called the "Bible" of mental disorders is being released Saturday with a host of new changes.

New case of SARS-like virus in Saudi: ministry

A new case of the deadly coronavirus has been detected in Saudi Arabia where 15 people have already died after contracting it, the health ministry announced on Saturday on its Internet website.

For combat veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, 'fear circuitry' in the brain never rests

Chronic trauma can inflict lasting damage to brain regions associated with fear and anxiety. Previous imaging studies of people with post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, have shown that these brain regions can over-or ...

New colonoscope provides ground-breaking view of colon

A ground-breaking advance in colonoscopy technology signals the future of colorectal care, according to research presented today at Digestive Disease Week(DDW). Additional research focuses on optimizing the minimal withdrawal ...

Flesh-eating disease victim gets prosthetic hands

(AP)—A woman who lost both hands, her left leg and right foot after contracting a flesh-eating disease has been fitted with prosthetic hands.