PHA-Exchange> New article on HIV and breast milk

[aviva]

-----Original Message-----
From: "Ted Greiner" <ted_greiner at hotmail.com>

Why HIV Avoids Breast-Feeding Babies Immune cells in breast
milk target virus,researchers say     
TUESDAY, July 23 <BR>(HealthScoutNews)

Immune cells in the milk of HIV-infected mothers appear to target
>and kill the AIDS-causing virus, new research concludes. The study's
>authors say the findings could explain the relatively low transmission
>rate from mother to child via breast-feeding, despite often high
>levels of the virus in the mother's milk. Researchers from the
>University of Alabama at Birmingham, the Zambia Exclusive
>Breast-Feeding Study, Boston University and Columbia University tested
>breast milk cells from HIV-infected women in the United States and
>Africa for their ability to respond to the HIV virus. </P>
><P>While breast milk cells from all of the HIV-infected women reacted
>to proteins from the HIV virus, there was no reaction from the milk
>cells of uninfected women. Other tests revealed that the responses
>were due to the presence of immune cells known as CD8+ T cells, the
>same immune cells that play a critical role in controlling HIV levels
>in the blood. "These studies provide evidence that maternally
>derived T cells make their way into the infant's [bloodstream] and
>potentially protect the infant," say the researchers. "In
>addition to the protection these cells may afford the [infant], we
>speculate that they may also be acting locally to reduce the viral
>load in breast milk -- potentially decreasing transmission to newborns
>from their HIV-infected mothers." </P>
><P>The findings appear in the August issue of the Journal of
>Virology.