Hello steemians!! How is your day going? My post for today is about human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), is a lentivirus (a subset of retrovirus) that causes HIV infection and over time acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).In many cases, HIV is a sexually transmitted infection and occurs by contact with or transfer of pre-ejaculation , blood, vaginal fluids, and semen. Non-sexual transmission can occur from an infected mother to her baby through breast milk.
contrary to popular belief one cannot get infected with HIV from touching, like from hugging or handshake, or coming in contact with someone else's saliva. A person cannot get infected from an insect bite, a cough, or sneezing. People also cannot get infected from touching light switches, using toilets, or drinking from the same glass as a person with the virus.
THE DISCOVERY OF HIV
HIV/AIDS was first observed in 1981 in the United States. The first cases were a bunch of injection drug users and homosexual men with no known cause of weakened immunity who showed symptoms of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia , a scarce opportunistic infection that was known to occur in people with very compromised immune systems. Soon thereafter, additional homosexual men developed a previously rare skin cancer called Kaposi's sarcoma. Many cases of PCP and KS emerged, notifying U.S.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) and a CDC task force was formed to monitor the outbreak. The earliest retrospectively described case of AIDS is believed to have been in Norway beginning in 1966.
ORIGIN OF HIV
Both HIV-1 and HIV-2 are said to have originated in primates in West central Africa, and are believed to have transferred to humans (by a process called zoonosis) in the early 20th century.
HIV-1 is proposed to have originated in southern Cameroon through the evolution of SIV, asimian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) that infects wild chimpanzees (HIV-1 descends from the SIV endemic in the chimpanzee subspecies Pan troglodytes troglodytes). The closest relative of HIV-2 is SIV, a virus of the sooty mangabey (Cercocebus atys atys), an Old World monkey living in West Africa (from southern Senegal to the western part of Côte d'Ivoire). New World monkeys like theowl monkey are resistant to HIV-1 infection, due to a genomic fusion of two viral resistance genes. HIV-1 is thought to have jumped the species barrier on at least three separate occasions, giving rise to the three groups of the virus, M, N, and O.
CONTROVERSIES
Many scientists have developed theories describing the source of this deadly disease and one of them is Dr. Jack Felder, a African American biochemistry scientist. He depicted AIDS as a scheme by the white people to wipe out the black race and related it to the way they used germ warfare when he was germ specialist at the fifth Army Regiment in Chicago. He also mentioned that whites triggered diabetes into the Red Indians who are the original inhabitants of America to drastically curtail their population. To validate his points, Felder also mentioned over 60 percent of all HIV cases are black teenagers. When asked why whites people could do that such a thing, Felder said whites are afraid of the game of number, it's also worth noting that over 50% of recorded HIV Victims are black.
Another question that comes to mind is that why is Africa the biggest victim to an infection found in the United States of America?!
PERCENTAGE OF HIV DEATHS EXCLUDING USA
- Nigeria (15.76%)
- South Africa (12.51%)
- India (11.50%)
- Tanzania (4.169%)
- Mozambique (4.061%)
- Zimbabwe (3.49%)
- Cameroon (3.09%)
- Indonesia (3.04%)
- Kenya (2.98%)
- Uganda (2.97%)
- Malawi (2.94%)
- DR Congo (2.17%)
- Ethiopia (2.11%)
- Other (29.21%)
CATEGORY
HIV is a member of the genus Lentivirus, part of the family Retroviridae. Lentiviruses have many morphologies and biological attributes in common. Many species are infected by lentiviruses, which are characteristically responsible for long-duration illnesses with a long incubation period. Lentiviruses are transmitted as single stranded, positive sense, enveloped RNA viruses. After entering into the target cell, the viral RNA genome is changed (reverse transcribed) into double-stranded DNA by a virally encoded enzyme, reverse transcriptase, that is moved along with the viral genome in the virus particle. The resulting viral DNA is then imported into the cell nucleus and integrated into the cellular DNA by a virally encoded enzyme, integrase, and host co-factors. Once integrated, the virus becomes latent, allowing the virus and its host cell to avoid it being discovered by the immune system, for an some amount of time. The virus can remain inactive in the human body for up to ten years after primary infection; during this period the virus does not cause symptoms. Alternatively, the integrated viral DNA may be transcribed, producing new RNA genomes and viral proteins, using host cell resources, that are packed and released from the cell as new virus fragments that will begin the replication cycle anew.
TREATMENT
HIV causes a person to become more prone to illness, so infected people need treatment options. However, there is no cure for HIV. To help comfort negative symptoms, drugs called anti-retroviral therapy (ART) are available for use. This treatment is called high active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART). HAART treatment begins with one non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) and two nucleoside analogue reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs). The NRTI drug could be named zidovudine (AZT), tenofovir (TDF), andlamivudine (3TC), or emtricitabine (FTC).
These drugs slows the movement of the HIV virus in the body. Usually, these treatments is made of a combination of three or more drugs, and each drug performs a different job in fighting the virus. HAART prevents the HIV from multiplying and destroying CD4 cells. CD4 cells are necessary to helps to protect the body from infections and cancer. Since the HIV virus destroys CD4 cells, it causes people with HIV to be more inclined to illness. It is advised to start HAART if a person has HIV and has a CD4 cell count of less than or equal to 350 cells/mm3. This number can be checked out by a doctor. One's age, sex, and other infections determine what type of treatment he or she should take. These medication regimens usually helps HIV-infected people live longer, healthier lives, and can also help prevent the HIV from advancing to the AIDS stage.
Image reference: 1