More than one million Americans and nearly 40 million people worldwide are infected with HIV-1. Despite the introduction of anti- HIV drugs, more research on the mechanisms of HIV-1 pathogenesis and replication is critical for developing safer and more effective treatments for AIDS. Investigators in UVA's Myles H. Thaler Center for AIDS and Human Retrovirus Research work within a community of infectious disease and immunology experts that ranks among the best in the nation. Here, they address fundamental questions about how AIDS develops and how HIV replicates at the cellular and molecular level.
One group studies the immune response to HIV-1 infection in the brain. Their goals are to understand the mechanisms of HIV-1 pathogenesis and develop and test genetic therapies for HIV-1 infection and AIDS. Another group works toward preventing AIDS-associated malignancies, such as Kaposi's sarcoma. The work of two additional groups in the Center focuses on understanding how HIV-1 takes control of the infected cell to promote HIV replication.
This multifaceted approach to HIV-1 and AIDS research creates a highly interactive environment where researchers have already made significant progress towards elucidating the fundamental cellular and pathogenic processes used by HIV-1 and Kaposi's Sarcoma-associated Herpesvirus. Understanding these mechanisms provideessential information for the design of new anti-viral drugs and immune-based therapies. These same studies also generate knowledge with broad implications for cancer, neurological disease, and other realms of medicine.