Why can we get HIV to a viral load of 0 but can’t get rid of the virus?
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The way I see it is like a garbage can. It needs to be emptied on a regular basis. If you don’t, then the trash would accumulate and cause a mess.
Antiviral and antiretroviral drugs we currently have are virustatic. They do not destroy virus instances. They merely interfere in the reproduction and growth of these viruses.
The issue lies in the very nature of HIV. It’s a retrovirus, so it sticks its genetic material into the host’s DNA. So in order for scientists to “permanently uninstall” HIV, it needs to be removed from the host’s DNA once and for all.
We already have tools that can theoretically do this, and the best one is CRISPR. But we’re in the early stages. Only mouse trials have been shown to work, and that doesn’t necessarily translate to humans, so we’d need to test on animals next.
Additionally, there’s worry of what are called “off-target effects”, which means CRISRP might by accident remove non-HIV DNA from the host’s DNA, so we should be absolutely sure a potential treatment will be safe. Some scientists worry that even after some CRISPR components finish its job, others might linger and remove DNA unpredictably, but that’s lesser of a worry.
In short, current anti-HIV drugs only control the infection. They can’t cure HIV completely because HIV is constantly getting made, all because it has become integrated into our very own DNA. We have a tool that can excise the HIV parts from the host’s DNA, but we still don’t have a safe and functional model for humans.
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