Gene Therapy Possibilities In Treating HIV

The use of gene therapy against viral infection is at the cutting-edge of new technology which has one important point in common with conventional therapies: it has multiple targets which can be applied at different stages of infection. This is particularly important with respect to HIV, said Gary Nabel from the University of Ann Arbour, Michigan, speaking at the 34th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy.

The main question asked about gene therapy is: will it ever be applicable in a broad sense? In the early days, said Dr Nabel, gene therapy was targeted at diseases which were caused by acquired genetic mutations. However, he noted, what has become clear over the last few years is that there are genetic changes in very common diseases. And so there are targets which present themselves as good options for genetic therapy.

With respect to HIV, he added, it is, if nothing else, a genetic disease; a disease of acquired abnormal genes. Interestingly, he said, many of the genetic approaches mooted for combating HIV can be applied to other viruses. Therefore, this focus may not only help in treating AIDS, but also in diseases which are, as yet, inadequately targeted. In HIV, one of the reasons why this is such an attractive approach is that within the T-cell, in terms of transcription apparatus, it would be ideal to target the gene products coded for by the extra nucleic acid while retaining the immunologic functions of the T-cells.