What is HIV?
HIV, or Human Immunodeficiency Virus, is one of the most destructive viral infections in human history. Responsible for more than 25 million deaths since 1981, HIV can be found in two strains, the most common being HIV-1. Believed to have originated in primate species around sub-Saharan Africa, both strands are immutable to contemporary medical efforts and remain the target of extensive research and prevention efforts.
How Is HIV Spread?
After 3 decades of medical research, three primary modes of infection have been identified: sexual contact, blood transmission, and in utero mother-to-child. The most common form of infection is through sexual conduct (primarily intercourse), with the risk for female-to-male transmission standing at 0.04 percent per act and male-to-female transmission at 0.08 percent per act.
How Does HIV Affect the Immune System?
The first stage of HIV contraction is acute HIV infection. Since HIV is comprised of both RNA and DNA elements, it has the ability to directly infect human cells and utilize their components (in one of the 46 chromosomes) to replicate parts of the HIV structure. The immune system, for all intents and purposes, is comprised of two primary cell types: the B-cell and the T-cell. The two particular types of T-cell, helper and cytotoxic, are affected in distinct ways by the virus, leading to a constant struggle between virus-replication efforts and immune system T-cell reproduction.
The helper T-cells (CD4) function as the body's alarm system to initiate the cytotoxic cells, which attack and kill those cells in the body infected by the intruding virus. Because HIV attacks these helper T-cells immediately upon contraction, the immune system response capabilities gradually deteriorate throughout the duration of infection. As the body regenerates new T-cells, the reproducing HIV strands will target, infect and kill the new immune system elements.
The fight turns into a cycle of cell infection, death and reproduction for approximately 10 years until the body is so severely weakened by an inability to produce T-cells that it succumbs to weak viral and bacterial organisms (not HIV) that are normally simple work for the base human immune system. Once this has occurred, the ensuing condition is commonly known as AIDS, or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.
Tags: immune system, Affect Immune, Affect Immune System, Does Affect, Does Affect Immune, helper T-cells