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Q. HIV that causes AIDS, first starts destroying

AIPMTAIPMT 2006Human Health and Disease

Solution:

The AIDS retrovirus, called human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), mounts a direct attack on CD4+ cells because it recognizes the CD4+ coreceptors associated with these cells. HIV's attack on CD4+ cells cripples the immune system in at least three ways. First, HIV-infected cells die only after releasing replicated viruses that infect other CD4+T cells, until the entire population of CD4+ T cell is destroyed. Second, HIV causes infected CD4+T cells, to secrete a soluble suppressing factor that blocks other T cells from responding to the HIV antigen. Finally, HIV may block transcription of MHC genes, hindering the recognition and destruction of infected CD+T cells, and thus protecting those cells from any remaining vestiges of the immune system. The combined effect of these responses to HIV infection is to wipe out the human immune defense.