scienceyoucanlove: Keeping Viral Load Low By Thomas Deerinck, NCMIR, USCD Over the past 30 years, th
scienceyoucanlove: Keeping Viral Load Low By Thomas Deerinck, NCMIR, USCD Over the past 30 years, the combined efforts of scientists and clinicians have delivered remarkable successes in HIV therapeutics. Since 1987, the FDA has approved more than 30 antiviral drugs, including 12 HIV protease inhibitors and one integrase inhibitor. These drugs stop ~99% of viral replication, essentially transforming HIV infection from a deadly disease to a chronic one. What will the next 30 years bring? Image: Here numerous HIV-1 particles leave a cultured HeLa cell. These viruses lack their vpu gene and thus can’t detach from the cell’s tethering factor, BST2. Each viron particle is ~120nm in diameter. The image was captured with a Zeiss Merlin ultra high-resolution scanning electron microscope. The cells were fixed, dehydrated, critical-point dried, and lightly sputter-coated with gold/palladium. through Cell.com -- source link