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factorsthat are fueling the hiv epidemic in south africa
essays on how western aids undeedevelops Africa
factorsthat are fueling the hiv epidemic in south africa
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HIV Vaccine Testing in Africa
The United Nations estimates that 5.8 million people per year become infected with the immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Ninety percent of these infections occur in sub- Saharan Africa, where infected persons do not have access to antiviral therapy. Approximately 2.4 million Africans died of AIDS in 2002, and 3.5 million occurred in the region. Where in the United States $12,000-$15,000 is usually spent on treating an HIV-infected person per year, only $6 is spent annually per person in Uganda.
The only method presently available to prevent the spread of HIV in less-developed countries is counseling against the behaviors that increase the risk of infection. It’s obvious that a vaccine would be more beneficial to these countries. There are several HIV vaccines in various stages of development that need to be tested to see their effectiveness. It seems reasonable to carry out such trials in less-developed countries.
Since 1984, when HIV was identified as the cause of AIDS, the development of a HIV vaccine has been a goal for the science world. Researchers have many different strategies that may lead to an effective HIV vaccine. Scientists take small parts of the HIV virus and change them in a laboratory to create synthetic copies. The experimental vaccines do not use whole or live HIV. The vaccines cannot cause HIV or AIDS. The vaccines being tested should produce either antibodies or cytotoxic T cells to fight the infection.
There are several types of experimental HIV vaccines. A peptide vaccine is made of tiny pieces of proteins from the HIV virus. The recombinant subunit protein vaccine is made of bigger pieces of proteins from the HIV virus. Examples of a recombinant subunit protein are gp120, gp140, or gp160 produced by genetic engineering. The DNA vaccine uses copies of a small number of HIV genes which are inserted into pieces of DNA called plasmids. The HIV genes will produce proteins very similar to the ones from real HIV. A live vector vaccine is made of HIV genes that have been taken out of the virus and altered. The genes are inserted into another vector, which carries them into the body’s cells. The genes in turn produce proteins that are normally found on the surface of the HIV virus. This type of vaccine most resembles the HIV virus but isn’t harmful. Many vaccines that are used today, like the smallpox vaccine, use this method. A vaccine combination uses any two vaccines, one after another, to create a stronger immune response.
Lechner F, Jegerlehner A, Tissot AC, et al. Virus-like particles as a modular system for novel vaccines. Intervirology 2002; 45: 212-7.
There is no vaccine for HIV, but there are some drugs that can extend their lives. Some of the treatments that are offered are very expensive and are not available to all people with HIV. Also, these treatments do not work for about 20% of people who have tried them. Some of the best ways to avoid contracting HIV is to abstain from sexual intercourse and from sharing needles if you do drugs. Do not share personal items that may be contaminated with blood.
Vaccine produce by genetic engineering allows the vaccine being produce to not have the complete form of the virus, taking way the virus ability to be harmful and becoming a live virus. Vaccines can be produced using recombinant DNA technology or using cell culture. Crop plants can bear cheaper bioreactors to produce antigen to be utilize as Edible vaccine. Edible vaccine are a cheaper alternative to recombinant vaccine. Transgenic plants are treated as edible vaccine. Transgenic bananas and tomatoes cure disease like cholera and Hepatitis-B
The country’s first cases of HIV were detected in 1982. About 2.6 million Ugandans were infected while 1.6 million people lost their lives to the HIV/AIDS illness. HIV/AIDS is a massive issue which currently, 7.2 percent of Uganda’s population is living with. 90% of HIV cases are discovered in developing countries and Uganda has the 7th highest number of HIV cases reported all over the world. This amounts to an estimated 1.4 million people, which includes approximately 190,000 children. In 2011 an estimated 62,000 people died from AIDS and 1.1 million children have been orphaned due to the virus. HIV is more common in women at 5.4 percent, compared to 2.4 percent prevalence rate amongst men. Developing countries such as Uganda have less money to support their basic necessities. Majority of these people do not have enough money to purchase health care to help keep them safe from the virus. As well in Uganda there is a lack of education about how HIV/AIDS is transmitted. Children need to be educate...
First, vaccines are the best way for a person to be virus free. One of the biggest issues with viruses is their adaptability and capability of eluding our immune system. Some viruses, like HIV, target the immune system, severely compromising this system’s functionality. In addition,
Since the development of anti-retroviral therapy (ART) in the 1990s, HIV/AIDs has evolved from a death sentence into a treatable disease. It has presented a unique global health problem because while the treatments were very effective, they were extremely expensive, required advanced laboratory monitoring, were prescribed indefinitely, and required excellent patient compliance. In many of the developing countries devastated by AIDs/HIV, the health and societal infrastructures often had difficult supporting an effective treatment program. For that reason, it is estimated that 71% of HIV/AID cases are in sub-Saharan Africa and only 39% of of them are on ART (AVERT, 2015). Southern Africa is often considered the “epicenter” of the
A significant research investment has been made in helping to reduce the burden of HIV-1 infection worldwide. Antivirals help delay the onset of AIDS. Vaccine research has achieved some minor victories. Animal models allow more thorough and representative study of HIV-1. While HIV/AIDS still remains a major concern for the global community, continued research will doubtless bring further advances, helping to prevent infections before they occur and to provide better outcomes for those already infected with HIV-1. Fortunately, the battle with HIV/AIDS—though far from being over—is going better than it ever has before.
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retro virus that causes AIDS. HIV is a virus that can only be contracted between human to human. HIV weakens your immune system because this virus is destroying cells that fight diseases and infection in your body. A virus can only produce itself by taking over a cell in the body of its h...
Although the sub-Saharan region accounts for just 10% of the world’s population, 67% (22.5 million) of the 33.4 million people living with HIV/AIDS in 1998 were residents of one of the 34 countries of sub-Saharan Africa, and of all AIDS deaths since the epidemic started, 83% have occurred in sub-Saharan Africa (Gilks, 1999, p. 180). Among children under age 15 living with HIV/AIDS, 90% live in sub-Saharan Africa as do 95% of all AIDS orphans. In several of the 34 sub-Saharan nations, 1 out of every 4 adults is HIV-positive (UNAIDS, 1998, p. 1). Taxing low-income countries with health care systems inadequate to handle the burden of non-AIDS related illnesses, AIDS has devastated many of the sub-Saharan African economies. The impact of AIDS on the region is such that it is now affecting demographics - changing mortality and fertility rates, reducing lifespan, and ultimately affecting population growth.
...us or bacterium used as the carrier. Recombinant vector vaccines are still being experimented on today, just like the DNA vaccinations. The only difference between recombinant vector vaccines and DNA vaccines is the fact recombinant vector vaccines use an attenuated virus or bacterium to introduce microbial DNA to the body’s cells. Scientists created this vaccine by observing nature, and how nature passes viruses along. Scientists noticed that viruses in nature latch on to the cells they want to inject, this caused scientists to figure out how to take parts of an attenuated virus and add genetic matter from other microbes into them. I know this sounds confusing, but it’s quite simple. Just think of it as poisoning the virus. Recombinant vector vaccines are very close to mimicking a natural infection, which causes the immune system to energize and start up sooner.
According to the CDC, almost 1.1 million people in the United States have HIV, yet almost 20% of those people are unaware that they are living with the condition (CDC, 2013c). When the HIV broke out almost 30 years ago in the United States, the number of new cases in a year was 130,000. Now, each year the new number of cases being presented is approximately 50,000 (CDC, 2013c). In locations like Sub-Saharan Africa, the statistics are higher. The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) states, “In 2011, an estimated 23.5 million people living with HIV resided in sub-Saharan Africa, representing 69% of the global HIV burden” (UNAIDS, 2012). The World Health Organization (WHO) reinforces this point by saying, “Sub-Saharan Africa is the most affected region [of HIV], with nearly 1 in every 20 adults living with HIV. Sixty nine per cent of all people living with HIV are living in this region” (WHO, 2013a). The statistics of infected people living in the United States is alarming but there are other countries, like Africa, which have higher rates of HIV due to very limited
According to WHO in 2007, “more than 95% of HIV cases are in developing countries, with two-thirds of them in sub-Saharan Africa. “ In addition, there were 2.1 million deaths related to HIV and 2.5 million...
The AIDS epidemic has reached disastrous proportions on the continent of Africa. Over the past two decades, two thirds of the more than 16 million people in the world infected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), which causes AIDS, live in sub-Saharan Africa. It is now home to the largest number of people infected, with 70 percent of the world’s HIV infected population. The problem of this ongoing human tragedy is that Africa is also the least equipped region in the world to cope with all the challenges posed by the HIV virus. In order understand the social and economic consequences of the disease, it is important to study the relationship between poverty, the global response, and the effectiveness of AIDS prevention, both government and grass roots.
Massive diversity and variability of HIV presents a huge challenge to an efficacious vaccine design, as the vaccine needs to protect against a plethora of different strains of the virus circulating around the globe [17]. The vaccines studied to date are designed against one or two types of HIV clades.
The emergence of HIV/AIDS is viewed globally as one of the most serious health and developmental challenges our society faces today. Being a lentivirus, HIV slowly replicates over time, attacking and wearing down the human immune system subsequently leading to AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome) at which point the affected individual is exposed to life threatening illnesses and eventual death. Despite the fact that a few instances of this disease have been accounted for in all parts of the world, a high rate of the aforementioned living with HIV are situated in either low or medium wage procuring nations. The Sub-Saharan region Africa is recognized as the geographic region most afflicted by the pandemic. In previous years, people living with HIV or at risk of getting infected did not have enough access to prevention, care and treatment neither were they properly sensitized about the disease. These days, awareness and accessibility to all the mentioned (preventive methods, care etc.) has risen dramatically due to several global responses to the epidemic. An estimated half of newly infected people are among those under age 25(The Global HIV/AIDS Epidemic). It hits hard as it has no visible symptoms and can go a long time without being diagnosed until one is tested or before it is too late to manage.