HIV/AIDS
Category archives for HIV/AIDS
The Pill for HIV: No, really, this is a bad idea
Posted by ERV on May 14, 2012 So some panel at the FDA just approved this antiretroviral drug, Truvada– they say its okay to prescribe this drug for HIV negative people to keep them from getting HIV. Im going to this news the nicest way possible: I think there were a lot of MDs, and very few PhDs, on this FDA review…
Another HIV Denier dead
Posted by ERV on April 18, 2012 Via jonnyneviripine: Maria Papagiannidou died last Sunday. Another very public and active denialist has kicked the bucket; sad but predictable. Her face and “story” is all over the internet. You can read more about her there. I know she contacted some people I know about starting HAART but presumably she left it a bit late.…
GMO CTLs vs HIV
Posted by ERV on April 17, 2012 This is just another excuse to poke fun at the stupidity of Creationists– Creationists try to lecture us all the time about how ‘perfect’ our immune system is. How wonderful and precise and intelligently designed it is obviously points towards the existence of a creator god (aka the Christian god). Well, if our immune system…
The Pill for HIV: A bad idea, actually
Posted by ERV on February 16, 2012 Conceptually, having something like The Pill anyone could take every day to prevent HIV-1 infections would be a good idea. Take some kind of preventative antretrovirals when you are sexually active and feel you are ‘at risk’, maybe prevent some new HIV-1 infections. We had hopes that an antiretroviral drug Tenofovir would work in precisely…
HIV-2 Vpx vs Behe (everyone wants in on the action)
Posted by ERV on February 14, 2012 Hey, do you all remember Michael Behe? Dude was for real ‘famous’ a while back (not just ‘Christian famous’). He went on talk shows and news programs (including the Colbert Report) to talk about his personal brand of Creationism, Intelligent Design. Unfortunately, things ‘didnt go as planned’ with Intelligent Design. The courts didnt buy ID,…
Tennessee senator not concerned about dead babies, women, or men. If they were HIV+, they werent ‘regular’ anyway.
Posted by ERV on January 30, 2012 Im glad none of you accused me of joking or exaggerating when I told this story: A *very* common exchange I have with the general public regarding HIV-1: Person– Where did HIV-1 come from? Me– HIV-1 is related to a virus we can find in African primates, SIV. SIV crossed over from chimpanzees to the…
HIV Snake Oil ‘cure’ leads to arrests in Uganda
Posted by ERV on January 24, 2012 We in the skeptic community like to make fun of naturopaths and homeopaths and all the snake oil salesmen out there. While its a good ol laugh here in the West, if not nostalgic, the damage these charlatans can do in other parts of the world is not funny at all. Long-time readers of SciBlogs…
If at first you dont succeed, deny, deny again
Posted by ERV on January 6, 2012 I think the unofficial Favorite Journal of ScienceBlogs has got to be the journal, Medical Hypotheses. It used to be, you could take two different approaches if you wanted to publish in Medical Hypotheses. 1– Smash your face into your keyboard for 15 minutes. Submit for publication. Or, the less expedient 2– Leave your laptop…
Gene therapy for HIV/AIDS prevention
Posted by ERV on December 13, 2011 Once you are infected with HIV-1, you are screwed. Yes, we have antiretroviral therapies, but you will never be cured. You will never be free from the virus. And there is always a chance that the virus you are infected with will become resistant to the antiretroviral drugs used (this isnt just a distant chance,…
Mary Magee is Jane Doe.
Posted by ERV on December 12, 2011 While you all are having a good time making fun of PZ Myers for bravely outing a dead Russian (damn zombie trolls!), I figured it would be a good time to talk about Anons in HIV World. Okay, so, I do HIV-1 research. The first thing everyone says when I mention this is “Oh my…