A mutation discovered in a key gene may explain why some people who are HIV-positive develop AIDS more slowly than others. The finding may eventually lead to new treatments.
Infected individuals with the mutation take on average 3.8 years longer than normal to develop AIDS, say researchers at the National Institutes of Health near Washington DC and Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore (
The researchers hope that they will be able to develop new ways to stave of AIDS by targeting this area and reducing CCR5 production in people who lack the mutation.
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