PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

The first animal model for sexual transmission of HIV

Animal model of HIV sexual transmission

2013-08-15
(Press-News.org) Infection by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a debilitating disorder in which progressive weakening of the immune system makes affected individuals more susceptible to potentially life-threatening infections and chronic diseases. Despite advances in the treatment and management of AIDS, there is no cure, and HIV infection remains a major global health problem. According to the WHO, there were an estimated 34 million infected individuals in 2011. Over the last three decades, a number of animal models have been developed to study aspects of HIV infection, pathogenesis and control. However, the currently available models do not recapitulate the physiological environment of the most common route of HIV transmission worldwide, vaginal intercourse. Now, Mary Jane Potash and colleagues from St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center and Columbia University Medical Center in New York, NY, have developed an approach for modelling heterosexual transmission of HIV in vivo. Their work was published recently in Disease Models & Mechanisms.

The work stems from an earlier collaboration between Potash and David J. Volsky (also from Columbia University); they established a chimeric HIV clone with a genetic modification that allows the virus to propagate in rodents instead of humans. Infection of mice with these viruses has been successfully applied to study aspects of HIV neuropathogenesis and to evaluate antiretroviral drugs and potential HIV vaccines. In their latest study, Potash and colleagues describe the efficient and reproducible transmission of chimeric HIV from infected male mice to uninfected females via mating, providing the first report of HIV transmission by coitus in an animal model. Treatment of females with antiretroviral drugs prior to mating prevented transmission of the virus, in line with observations in humans. Intriguingly, the efficiency of viral transmission declined during estrus in mice, providing evidence that the hormonal environment in the female reproductive tract can impact on host susceptibility to HIV infection. This finding has implications for HIV infection in humans, where it has been suggested that vulnerability to viral infection could vary during the menstrual cycle.

The model described here has several advantages compared with previous experimental approaches for investigating sexual transmission of HIV. For example, transmission occurs during mating, in contrast with earlier systems in which viral stocks need to be applied manually to the vaginal surface; thus, the system preserves features of the male and female reproductive tracts. This is important, as previous work has shown that host factors and cells in the seminal fluid activate cells in the female reproductive tract and enhance HIV infection, yet the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Similarly, as indicated in this study, the local environment in the female reproductive tract can influence the rate and efficiency of HIV sexual transmission. By preserving the physiological features of coitus, the approach allows the dynamic aspects of viral sexual transmission to be investigated in vivo. Furthermore, the system can be used to investigate the efficacy of new interventive strategies aimed at preventing the most frequent route of HIV transmission.

"We developed this system to study HIV spread by mating in mice with the hope that it can be applied to promote practical approaches to prevent HIV sexual transmission to people at risk" explained Dr Potash, when asked about the goals of this research.

### About Disease Models & Mechanisms: Disease Models & Mechanisms (DMM) is an Open Access international biomedical research journal published by The Company of Biologists, a not-for-profit charitable organisation based in Cambridge, UK. DMM was launched in late 2008 with the aim of connecting and promoting communication among disease researchers, a broad scientific community that has traditionally been diffused across many different disease- and organism-specific journals. DMM also aims to promote the development of ideas, projects and collaborations among basic scientists, translational researchers and clinicians to support the growing translational emphasis in basic research.


ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Chronicling cancer experience online can reduce depressive symptoms in breast cancer patients

2013-08-14
Adults increasingly are conveying their personal experiences with serious disease online, but do such chronicles help the authors or their audience? In the first known study of its kind, UCLA researchers discovered that creating a personal website to chronicle the cancer experience and communicate with one's social network can reduce depressive symptoms, increase positive mood and enhance appreciation for life among women diagnosed with breast cancer. The study, published online Aug. 12 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (and scheduled for print publication at ...

Plastic solar cells' new design promises bright future

2013-08-14
Energy consumption is growing rapidly in the 21st century, with rising energy costs and sustainability issues greatly impacting the quality of human life. Harvesting energy directly from sunlight to generate electricity using photovoltaic technologies is considered to be one of the most promising opportunities to produce electricity in an environmentally benign fashion. Among the various photovoltaic technologies, polymer (plastic) solar cells offer unique attractions and opportunities. These solar cells contain Earth-abundant and environmentally benign materials, can ...

1-pot to prep biomass for biofuels

2013-08-14
The advantages of the "one-stop" shop have long been recognized in the retailing and services industries. Similar advantages would also be realized for the biofuels industry with the development of a "one-pot" processing system in which sugars could be extracted from biomass and turned into fuels in a single vat. A major step forward in this goal has now been achieved by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI) who report the first demonstration of a one-pot, wash-free, process for the ionic liquid pretreatment and saccharification ...

Digital streak camera captures full-color photographs of high-speed objects

2013-08-14
LAGUNA HILLS, California, USA -- Researchers at MetroLaser, Inc., have developed a new design for a digital streak camera that captures full-color images of projectiles traveling up to 3350 m/s, which is 10 times the speed of sound. This system was designed to replace the outdated film-based streak cameras that are still in use at high-speed test tracks. Film-based streak photography records the motion of an object as it passes in front of a camera lens, while the film moves behind a vertical slit aperture during the exposure. The result is a long, continuous composite ...

Children of obese mothers face risk of early death, study shows

2013-08-14
Children born to obese mothers are more likely to die early as adults than those whose mothers were a normal weight, a study has found. The offspring of obese mothers are one-third more likely to die before the age of 55, mainly as a result of heart disease, researchers found. Children born to mothers who were overweight when they became pregnant were also 10 per cent more likely to die prematurely in later life than those born to mothers of a normal weight. The study, carried out by the Universities of Edinburgh and Aberdeen, examined the health records of more ...

Children of obese mothers at greater risk of early heart death as adults

2013-08-14
Children of obese and overweight women have a higher risk of early cardiovascular death as adults, finds a study published on bmj.com today. The findings highlight the urgent need for strategies to prevent obesity in women of childbearing age and the need to assess the offspring of obese mothers for their cardiovascular risk, say the authors. Rates of maternal obesity have risen rapidly in the past two decades. In the United States, about 64% of women of reproductive age are overweight and 35% are obese, with a similar pattern in Europe. Many studies have shown a ...

How bacteria found in mouth may cause colorectal cancer

2013-08-14
Gut microbes have recently been linked to colorectal cancer, but it has not been clear whether and how they might cause tumors to form in the first place. Two studies published by Cell Press on August 14th in the journal Cell Host & Microbe reveal how gut microbes known as fusobacteria, which are found in the mouth, stimulate bad immune responses and turn on cancer growth genes to generate colorectal tumors. The findings could lead to more effective strategies for the early diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of colorectal cancer. "Fusobacteria may provide not only ...

CWRU dental researchers discover how an oral bacterium can trigger colorectal cancer

2013-08-14
Researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine have discovered how a common oral bacterium can contribute to colorectal cancer, a finding that opens promising new research avenues for the development of approaches to prevent and treat the disease. "We found this cancer is linked to an infection from [the bacterium]," said Yiping Han, professor of periodontics at the dental school and the study's lead investigator. "This discovery creates the potential for new diagnostic tools and therapies to treat and prevent the cancer." The results of ...

Stanford scientists get a handle on what made Typhoid Mary's infectious microbes tick

2013-08-14
STANFORD, Calif. — Stanford University School of Medicine scientists have shown how salmonella — a bacterial menace responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths each year from typhoid fever and food poisoning — manages to hide out in immune cells, altering their metabolism to its own benefit, much as someone might remodel a newly rented home to suit his own comfort. Salmonella's ability to position itself inside infected people's cells for the long haul can turn them into chronic, asymptomatic carriers who, unknown to themselves or others, spread the infectious organism ...

Growing use of MRIs leading to more invasive breast cancer surgery

2013-08-14
Heavy use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may be leading to unnecessary breast removal in older women with breast cancer, according to a study by Yale School of Medicine researchers in the current issue of Breast Cancer Research and Treatment. "These data are concerning because the long-term benefits associated with bilateral mastectomy for older women with breast cancer are unclear," said the study's lead author Cary Gross. M.D., associate professor of internal medicine at Yale School of Medicine and director of the Cancer Outcomes, Public Policy, and Effectiveness ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Q&A: How to train AI when you don't have enough data

Wayne State University researchers uncover potential treatment targets for Zika virus-related eye abnormalities

Discovering Van Gogh in the wild: scientists unveil a new gecko species

Small birds spice up the already diverse diet of spotted hyenas in Namibia

Imaging detects transient “hypoxic pockets” in the mouse brain

Dissolved organic matter could be used to track and improve the health of freshwaters

Indoor air quality standards in public buildings would boost health and economy, say international experts

Positive associations between premenstrual disorders and perinatal depression

New imaging method illuminates oxygen's journey in the brain

Researchers discover key gene for toxic alkaloid in barley

New approach to monitoring freshwater quality can identify sources of pollution, and predict their effects

Bidirectional link between premenstrual disorders and perinatal depression

Cell division quality control ‘stopwatch’ uncovered

Vaccine protects cattle from bovine tuberculosis, may eliminate disease

Andrew Siemion to receive the SETI Institute’s 2024 Drake Award

New study shows how the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus enters our cells

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy proves effective for locally advanced penile squamous cell carcinoma

Study flips treatment paradigm in bilateral Wilms tumor, shows resistance to chemotherapy may point toward favorable outcomes

Doctors received approximately $12.1 billion from drug and device makers between 2013-2022

Discovery suggests new strategy against follicular lymphoma

Making the future too bright: how wishful thinking can point us in the wrong direction

Ochsner Health named to Newsweek’s America’s Greatest Workplaces 2024 for Job Starters

Three-year study of young stars with NASA’s Hubble enters new chapter

North Carolina takes the lead in PFAs research with Collaboratory’s $3 million investment to expand the state’s research capacity

Is it the school, or the students?

Exploring the relationship between HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis and the incidence of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis – findings from Denmark

Music: Song lyrics have become simpler and more repetitive since 1980

Environment: More than half of Colorado River’s water used to irrigate crops

When inequality is more than “skin-deep”: Social status leaves traces in the epigenome of spotted hyenas in Tanzania

Study explores the future of at-home cancer treatment

[Press-News.org] The first animal model for sexual transmission of HIV
Animal model of HIV sexual transmission