Gene Determines Risk of HIV-AIDS

The researchers screened more than 4,300 HIV-negative and HIV-positive people for a gene called CCL3L1, which codes for a protein that blocks HIV from infecting cells. People with more copies of the CCL3L1 gene than average were less likely to go on to develop AIDS. U.S. scientists Thursday said a new study shows people with more copies of a particular gene are less susceptible to contracting HIV-AIDS. The finding could lead to a screening test to identify a person's level of susceptibility to the fatal disease, reported a team of researchers, headed by scientists from the University of Texas Health Science Center and the U.S. Air Force, in Science Express online. The researchers screened more than 4,300 HIV-negative and HIV-positive people to determine the number of copies each had of a gene called CCL3L1. This gene codes for a protein that blocks HIV from infecting cells. People with more copies of the CCL3L1 gene than the average for others of the same geographical ancestry were less likely to become infected with HIV or go on to develop AIDS. For example, HIV-negative African-American adults had an average of four copies of CCL3L1, so an African-American with five or more copies of the gene would be less susceptible to the disease Source: http://www.technewsworld.com/story/Gene-Determines-Risk-of-HIV-AIDS-39500.html