Scientists say they can cut HIV particles from cells Blood samples

 

Scientists say they have succeeded in removing the HIV virus from infected cells, using the Nobel Prize-winning Crispr gene editing technology.

it works like scissors, but at the molecular level, it cuts the DNA so that the "bad" cells can be removed or turned off.

The hope is to eventually be able to completely eliminate the virus from the body, although more work is needed to see if it will be safe and effective.

Existing HIV drugs can prevent the virus but not eliminate it.

The University of Amsterdam team, presenting a summary of their early results at a clinical meeting this week, insists that their work remains only a "proof of concept" and will not be an HIV cure any time soon.

and Dr James Dixon, assistant professor of stem cell technology and gene therapy at the University of Nottingham, agrees, saying the full implications still need to be explored.

"Further work will be needed to show the results in these cell experiments can be replicated throughout the body for future therapy," he said.

"There will be more progress needed before it has an impact on those with HIV."