Direct Control of Human Gene Expression by HIV Proteins

艾滋病是人类历史上最具破坏性的流行病之一。导致艾滋病的艾滋病毒已造成2500多万人死亡，其中仅2005年就有300万人死亡。虽然抗病毒药物可以减缓这种疾病，但仍然没有治愈方法或疫苗。像所有的病毒一样，HIV需要利用细胞的正常机制进行自我复制。作为回应，细胞已经发展出阻止病毒复制和触发免疫反应的机制。最近，人们已经清楚地认识到，艾滋病毒控制宿主细胞，创造有利于病毒复制和传播的环境。HIV开启了帮助感染的人类基因，关闭了帮助免疫反应的基因。这可能是艾滋病的致命弱点。防止艾滋病毒利用人类基因将阻止病毒复制，而且由于人类基因很少发生突变，这不会导致艾滋病毒产生耐药性。理查德·詹纳（Richard Jenner）试图使用扫描人类基因组的先进技术来发现艾滋病毒控制的所有人类基因，并了解艾滋病毒是如何控制它们的。这项工作将在伦敦大学学院进行，它将确定HIV复制所需的基因，并为预防HIV感染的药物提供靶标。

AIDS is one of the most destructive epidemics in human history. HIV, the cause of AIDS, has killed over 25 million people, including 3 million people in 2005 alone. Although anti-viral drugs can slow the disease, there is still no cure or vaccine. HIV, like all viruses, needs to use the cell‘s normal machinery to replicate itself. In response, the cell has developed mechanisms that prevent virus replication and trigger an immune response. Recently, it has become clear that HIV takes control of its host cell to create an environment conducive to virus replication and transmission. HIV turns on human genes that help infection and turns off genes that aid the immune response. This may be the Achilles heal of HIV. Preventing HIV from using human genes would block virus replication and, because human genes rarely mutate, this will not lead to HIV resistance. Richard Jenner seeks to use advanced technologies that scan the human genome to discover all the human genes that HIV controls and to learn how HIV controls them. This work, to be carried out at University College London, will identify genes needed by HIV to replicate and provide targets for drugs that will prevent HIV infection.