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Aids Attacks

Essay by   •  December 18, 2012  •  Essay  •  523 Words (3 Pages)  •  1,430 Views

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AIDS are caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which originated in non-human primates in Sub-Saharan Africa and was transferred to humans during the late 19th century. Two types of HIV infect humans: HIV-1 and HIV-2. HIV-1 is extremely dangerous and harmful in its effects and it is more easily transmitted and is the cause of the huge majority of HIV infections. The deadly disease damage of HIV-1 is closely related to a virus found in the chimpanzees of the subspecies Pan troglodytes, which lives in the forests of the Central African. HIV is a retrovirus and it is named so because they reverse the usual DNA to RNA flow of genetic information in transcription.

AIDS attacks cells of the immune system, as its name implies, (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). HIV has a membranous cover that helps the cell recognize host cells and come together with the host cell membrane, delivering the inside of the virus to the host cell. After HIV enters a host cell, the protein coat surrounding the RNA as a template to make a double-stranded DNA then goes into the nucleus and makes itself go into the host cell. AIDS causes damage to the human body in many ways. First symptoms of this disease may include headache, sore throat, fever, swollen neck and groin, extreme fatigue, rashes and diarrhea. A person suffering from AIDS may give in to tuberculosis or other similar lung infections. In most of the cases the affected person loses body weight severely. The affected person may also go through Kaposi's sarcoma, a kind of cancer. Due to this, the person has to undergo painful swelling, particularly around the eyes. The person infected with HIV virus may also suffer from open sores. The person with AIDS is also likely to suffer from white patches or ulcers in the mouth. The infected person may get a brain tumor. A person with AIDS may also may come down to esophagitis (inflammation of the lining of the lower end of the esophagus). Eventually the person dies a painful death.

There is no cure for AIDS at this time. But, a variety of treatments are available that can help keep symptoms at bay and improve the quality of life for those who have already developed symptoms. Antiretroviral therapy suppresses the replication of the HIV virus in the body. A combination of several antiretroviral drugs, called highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), has been very effective in reducing the number of HIV particles in the bloodstream. This is how much free virus is found in the blood. Preventing the virus from replicating can improve T-cell counts and help the immune system recover from the HIV infection. Treatment with HAART has complications though. HAART is a bunch of different medications and they all have its own side effects. Some common side effects are collection of fat on the back and abdomen, general sick feeling, headache, nausea, and weakness. When used for a long time, these medications increase the risk of heart attack,

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