STOCKHOLM: A new and more aggressive strain of HIV discovered in West Africa causes significantly faster progression to Aids, researchers at Sweden’s Lund University said yesterday.
The new strain of the virus that causes Aids, called A3/02, is a fusion of the two most common HIV strains in Guinea-Bissau. It has so far only been found in West Africa.
“Individuals who are infected with the new recombinant form develop Aids within five years, and that’s about two to two-and-a-half years faster than one of the parent (strains),” said Angelica Palm, one of the scientists responsible for the study based on a long-term follow-up of HIV-positive people in Guinea-Bissau.
Recombinant virus strains originate when a person is infected by two different strains, whose DNA fuse to create a new form. Some 35.3 million people around the world are living with HIV, which destroys the immune system and has caused more than 25 million deaths since Aids first emerged in the early 1980s. AFP
