HIV, discovered new strain of the virus

A new strain of HIV has been discovered, the virus that causes AIDS. It hasn't happened for 19 years. The study, published in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, reveals how this strain belongs to the M family. It is the first new strain identified since the guidelines for the classification of subtypes were established in 2000. the tenth group of the M group. This discovery reminds us how to end the pandemic we must consider this virus in continuous transformation and use the most advanced technologies and resources to monitor its evolution, one of the authors of the research said in a note Carole McArthur, of the University of Missouri, in Kansas City. Anthony Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has assured that current HIV treatments are effective against this strain. "There is no reason to panic or even worry about it," Fauci said. Not many people are infected. This is an anomalous value. According to the Abbott Laboratories, which conducted the research together with the University of Missouri, there are only three people infected with this new strain. The M group version of the HIV virus is responsible for 90% of the 37.9 million current infections, according to data from the World Health Organization. Unaids estimates that in 2016, around 1.8 million people were infected. For scientists to be able to establish that this is a new subtype, three cases must be detected independently. The first two cases of this new strain were found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1983 and 1990. The third sample, always found in the Congo, was collected in 2001 as part of a study aimed at preventing the transmission of the virus from mother to son.