Aids Epidemic
...that more than half of those people are unaware that they have contracted the virus and are likely to pass it to another person. Considering the deadly implications of this behavior more education is needed worldwide to conquer this outbreak.
One reason why HIV is so deadly is its ability to compromise the human immune system. "T-helper cells" or CD4+ T cells are crucial to the immune response. They are responsible for signaling other cells in the immune system to come respond to infection. Without these cell functioning properly a person is subject to opportunistic infections and often die from them.
One mechanism that the HIV virus uses to destroy helper T-cells is Apoptosis. Normal cell function is disrupted by the virus in an infected cell and can trigger a process known as programmed cell death, or apoptosis. This is the body's attempt to rid itself of the infected cell.
Another mechanism that the HIV virus uses to destroy helper T-cells is direct cell killing. When an infected cell contains a large amount of the virus, the virus essentially "pops" the cell by attempting to bud through the cell membrane. Unfortunately, not only does the cells die, but it also releases more viruses into the body to infect other cells.
Lastly, HIV virus can also cause a helper T-cell to be unable to respond to immune system signals. This combination of apoptosis, direct cell killing, and anergy is devastating to the human immune system. By reducing the number of healthy helper T-cells, the body is unable to respond to the virus in a large enough capacity to disable it. Not only are there few helper T-cells, but the ones left may be unable to reproduce or signal other immune cells for help. The virus has effectively killed or disarmed all of our bodies defenses against pathogens, leaving the door open for opportunistic infections.
Not only do...
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