This Week In HIV/AIDS News

New research from the University of Texas and University College London, published yesterday in the journal Cell Host & Microbe, suggests that a mutation in the Duffy antigen, or DARC, present on red blood cells may increase an individual’s chances of contracting HIV by 40 percent. The mutation spread over the course of several millennia in Africa and confers resistance to the world’s most prevalent malarial strain, but one that is no longer a serious threat to that continent.

According to the research, 90 percent of the African population express two copies of a mutation in DARC called DARC-negative. This mutation effectively removes the Duffy antigen from the surface of red blood cells, where it would normally bind to chemokines, small molecules that contribute to the immune response. Antigens like Duffy are large molecules that help generate antibodies and increase the response of the immune system.

However, the new study suggests that the mutated Duffy antigen that is so common in the African population actually helps the HIV virus attach to red blood cells, and more efficiently infect T cells. T cells are like the police chiefs of the immune system—they activate other cells and tell them to destroy various biological threats, such as cells that have been infected by viruses. Once T cells get infected by HIV, the body’s ability to destroy other cells infected by the virus is severely compromised.

But the DARC mutation is not completely devastating for those at risk of contracting HIV. The study indicates that “DARC-negative… is associated with slower disease progression.” In other words, HIV spreads slower when the body’s immune system is already slightly compromised by the mutation in DARC. So while individuals who are DARC negative are at a greater risk for contracting HIV, the same mutation may also slow the progression of the disease.

This research news comes just after the House and Senate passed bills allocating $50 billion for the global fight against AIDS and other diseases and lifting a travel ban for HIV-positive people that has been in place since 1987. However, this latest work on the mutation suggests that policymakers should also increase their commitment to funding HIV/AIDS research, especially because of further discouragement within the community about the possibilities for the development of a vaccine.

Tags: genetics, medicine, public health

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