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Phoenix666 [soylentnews.org] writes:

A study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), in collaboration with scientists at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR), Janssen Vaccines & Prevention B.V., one of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson and Gilead Sciences, Inc., has demonstrated that combining an experimental vaccine with an innate immune stimulant may help lead to viral remission in people living with HIV [sciencedaily.com]. In animal trials, the combination decreased levels of viral DNA in peripheral blood and lymph nodes, and improved viral suppression and delayed viral rebound following discontinuation of anti-retroviral therapy (ART). The research team's findings appeared online today in the journal Nature.

"The objective of our study was to identify a functional cure for HIV -- not to eradicate the virus, but to control it without the need for ART," said lead author Dan Barouch, MD, PhD, Director of the Center for Virology and Vaccine Research at BIDMC. "Current antiretroviral drugs, although they're lifesaving, do not cure HIV. They merely hold it in check. We are trying to develop strategies to achieve ART-free, long-term viral suppression."

The finding would make an enormous difference in Africa where HIV is epidemic, if they can get an affordable treatment into the field.

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