NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Some strains of Lactobacillus can bind to the mannose present in the HIV envelope, thus killing the virus and preventing host infection, according to a presentation this week at the 2005 American Society for Microbiology Beneficial Microbes Conference.
“The dominant sugar that coats the HIV envelope is mannose, which is not digested by humans,” Dr. Lin Tao told Reuters Health. “By isolating a bacterium that digests mannose, we hope to develop a prophylactic treatment for people at risk.”
According to their meeting abstract, Dr. Tao, at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and colleagues screened 170 oral and 800 vaginal Lactobacillus isolates and found 18 that bind to mannose in the HIV envelope and digest the virus. The binding was mannose-dependent, as shown by the addition of 50 mM mannose to the culture medium that prevented the bacteria from binding to the virus.
Using a “mock fluorescent HIV model,” the investigators established a time-course and dose-dependent killing cure of HIV by the mannose-binding lactobacilli.
The researcher pointed out that HIV’s frequent mutations have prevented the development of an effective vaccine. Prophylactic lactobacilli would continue to be effective over time, since the envelope remains mannose-rich in spite of frequent mutations.
He believes that fermented foods or “feminine products” can be produced to safely and efficiently prevent the spread of HIV orally, rectally and vaginally.
His group’s next steps, he added, will be to find nonprofit funding sources to develop the product, the primary beneficiaries of which would be poor populations in developing countries.
MeSH Headings:Antigens, Viral: Behavioral Sciences: Community Psychiatry: Congresses: Behavioral Disciplines and Activities: Health Care Economics and Organizations: Environment and Public Health: Health Occupations: Medicine: Organizations: Preventive Medicine: Preventive Psychiatry: Primary Prevention: Psychiatry: Retroviridae Proteins: Specialties, Medical: Viral Envelope Proteins: Viral Proteins: HIV Antigens: Viral Structural Proteins: Gene Products, env: HIV Envelope Protein gp120: Food and Beverages: Probiotics: Polyproteins: Biological Sciences: Health Care: Psychiatry and Psychology: Technology, Food and BeveragesCopyright © 2002 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.
