MINNEAPOLIS — Researchers at the University of Minnesota have found a potential first step toward an HIV cure, although they admit it's still years away from being a viable option. Currently, those living with HIV can take medication to help suppress symptoms, but there is no cure.
Using white blood cells the body naturally produces called "Natural Killer" or "NK" cells, along with NK cells from a close relative and a drug to increase NK activity, researchers found a decreased amount of the HIV virus in a study of six people living with HIV.
"It's within reach," Dr. Joshua Rhein, Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases and International Medicine, said. "It's really within reach for the first time in a long time."
These NK cells are not a new development in medicine and have been studied for years in cancer patients.
Dr. Jeff Miller, deputy director of the Masonic Cancer Center on the U of M campus, has been studying those cells for decades.
"I guess in the HIV setting, we're hoping that we can activate these NK cells to now target the reservoir, the residual infected cells in patients living with HIV," Dr. Miller said. "If there was an easy way to do this, with very little risk, this could change some paradigms for future therapy."
It's a potential game-changer for HIV patients, but both doctors are cautious to say that this will be the cure – emphasizing that this is just the first step.
"These all take, you know, separate research questions," Dr. Rhein said. "I think we're in a great time and a great place to really achieve this."
Funding for the grant was provided by The Foundation for AIDS Research.
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