University of Pennsylvania researchers are looking to developing naturally occurring proteins called zinc fingers as a future treatment for AIDS.
Image: AIDS logo. Credit: Sully Pixel/flickr
The proteins will be used to trigger T cells and Penn scientists along with Sangamo Biosciences report in an issue of Nature Biotechnology that they have been able to reduce the viral load of immune-deficient mice transplanted with engineered T cells, according to a University of Pennsylvania statement.
"By inducing mutations in the CCR5 gene using zinc finger proteins, we've reduced the expression of CCR5 surface proteins on T cells, which is necessary for the AIDS virus to enter these immune system cells," explains first author Elena Perez, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Penn. "This approach stops the AIDS virus from entering the T cells because it now has an introduced error into the CCR5 gene."
The zinc finger treatment mimics those rare individuals who do not have a working CCR5 receptor on the surface of their T cells and are therefore immune to HIV infection.
The study renders the CCR5 gene non-functional by bringing a DNA enzyme to the CCR5 sequence. With no CCR5 protein on the cell's surface, HIV cannot enter, say the researchers, leading to hopes of an effective treatment for HIV sufferers.
This was demonstrated effectively in a mouse model: "We followed them over time and showed that those mice that received the zinc-finger-treated cells showed less viral load than controls and improved CD4 counts," says Perez.
The researchers say they are next planning to try a clinical trial in humans in which T cells from HIV patients would have their CCR5 gene deliberately knocked out. These modified T cells could then be infused back into the patients to re-establish their immune system and decrease their viral load.
View blog reactions
There are currently no comments for this article. Be the first to comment! (no registration required)
Advertising
There are currently no comments for this article. Be the first to comment! (no registration required)