Scientists have reported a new likely case of a complete cure for HIV infection with an aggressive combination of antiretroviral drugs and nicotinamide (vitamin B3), which causes infected cells to awaken a latent virus, making them vulnerable to immunity. This is reported by Science.
The patient was a 36-year-old man from Brazil who was dubbed the Patient from São Paulo. The course of treatment reduced the number of viral particles to zero, and after the cessation of therapy in March 2019, HIV was no longer observed in his blood. The number of antibodies also dropped to extremely low levels, indicating a lack of infected cells in the lymph nodes and intestines. For most people on antiretroviral drugs and who stop treatment, their viral load starts to rise again within a few weeks.
However, scientists do not yet know for sure whether the Patient from São Paulo was really cured of HIV. So far, scientists have not examined the lymph nodes and intestinal tissue to confirm the absence of the virus.
Defeating HIV is difficult because the pathogen, like other retroviruses, embeds its genetic material into the DNA of human cells, which allows it to remain dormant, avoiding the immune system.
Researchers have developed several strategies to cleanse these viral reservoirs, but none have been effective. In addition, reports of some cures after antiretroviral therapy have been premature. For example, a child from Mississippi was considered cured, but two years after stopping the drug, the virus reappeared in his body.
To date, only two cases of complete cure for HIV have been confirmed. American Timothy Ray Brown and London patient underwent bone marrow transplant to treat blood cancer. However, this is an expensive and risky approach that does not always work.
