Daily Telegraph: This is the first detailed glimpse of one of the most deadly organisms on the planet, one that has killed about 25 million people and now infects another 40 million people, of which about three million will die this year alone.
Despite having known for more than two decades that human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is responsible for Aids, clear images of the virus have been elusive. Many articles use a computer generated image, or direct images – fuzzy blobs and dots – taken by an electron microscope. The problem is that the virus is astonishingly variable in size and shape and it has not been possible to get a good image until now, revealing it has an unusual lopsided heart, shaped like a coffin.
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Alarmingly, 40 million people are infected with HIV/AIDS and 8,000 people die from the disease every day. This disturbing fact provides a rather large and inviting welcome mat for any progress. No sign saying “pardon our progress” is needed. The recent development of the HIV virus model is allowing more tests and research to be performed, bringing us one step closer to a cure. Perhaps one of the most discouraging aspects of this situation is the vast amount of money being spent to undergo research and provide the medication needed for patients, which brings me to another encouraging piece of news. From Reuters AlertNet, “Former U.S. President Bill Clinton announced on Thursday an initiative with nine drug companies he said would cut the cost of HIV/AIDS testing and treatment in 50 developing countries and help save hundreds of thousands of lives.” These two developments have provided a ray of hope in a world plagued by one of the deadliest existing diseases.