Study Suggests Blocking A Protein That Initiates Immune Response Can Actually Aid In Fighting HIV

Source: Tech Times

Blocking type I interferon protein can help reinstate the immune system of the body that fights against viral infections — making it possible to assist in battling HIV.

Type I interferon is the protein that activates immune cells in the body when it is hit by a viral infection. When a chronic viral infection like HIV invades a body, the CD4 T immune cells that are triggered by the protein get destroyed by the virus, resulting in paralysis of the immune system.

"We show that the type of interferon being produced during chronic stages of HIV infection has detrimental effects on the body's ability to fight off HIV and other types of infection or cancer and could actually be contributing to accelerated HIV disease," said Scott Kitchen, the study's senior author from David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.