Since 1980s, HIV has caused an alarming epidemic without any functional cure up to this date. It is highly feared by many and claimed millions of lives across the world. However, such virus may be Mother Nature's gift to mankind as a possible potent weapon for medical breakthrough.

HIV Can Be Modified

HIV has no cure but it can be the cure to other diseases which kill faster than AIDS. Some medical researchers are focusing efforts to find more about HIV rather than looking for a vaccine or functional cure.

According to a CNRS team at the Architecture et Réactivité de l'ARN (RNA Architecture and Reactivity), HIV can be transformed as a biotechnology tool for improving human health. Medical experts believe in the advantage of the HIV replication machinery to battle diseases such as cancer-causing tumor cells.

By altering the HIV genome, the engineered virus will attack cancer cells instead of the immune cells which reduce the need for toxic anticancer drugs and reduce side effects of other anticancer treatments. However, patients using this treatment are still considered HIV positive but unlikely to kill faster compared to cancer itself.

Sexual Education

Due to HIV/AIDS epidemic, the public is now aware of what risks they'll face on unsafe sexual behavior, thus, enabling more responsible actions especially for teenagers. Back in the old days, sexual encounters leave out safe sex principles with intense engagement to multiple sexual partners that help spread sexually transmitted infections faster.

Public health offices have now opened the minds of the people that sexual encounters should be included among responsible actions and shouldn't be neglected to prevent risking our loved ones.

Pushing Research Further

The global threat of HIV/AIDS pushes science to look closely on the unlocking HIV which has led several breakthroughs never found before. Some of the notable discoveries are:

- Relation of HIV to the cats (FIV) and monkeys (SIV) HIV-like infections.

- Discovery on the "cloaking" mechanism of HIV against immune cells.

- Engineering and modification of the HIV itself.

- Medical research for effective treatments against STDs.

- Better testing procedures against STDs and HIV.

Research Retroviruses

HIV isn't the only retrovirus known by science. Some of them includes Hepatitis B virus and other variants found in animals. HIV/AIDS challenge experts to find more information, clues and knowledge regarding the world of retroviruses on how to manage, cure or contain in case another global health crisis occurs.

More and more companies are developing new strategies and antiretroviral drugs to help control these viruses and reduce side effects than before.

Unusual Cases

Rare cases have been found which enable few people to get cured from HIV/AIDS. Timothy Ray Brown also known as "the Berlin Patient" which received his freedom from HIV due to a stem cell transplant wherein his donor appears to have HIV-resistant blood components.

The mutation called CCR5 delta32 has been characterized as resistant against HIV and only found in a small percentage in Europe. Brown's case getting a donor with the mutation gene encouraged medical experts to develop an engineering method to allow other patients to get cured.

HIV is deadly and incurable today but science keeps on evolving that may lead to a time when HIV becomes curable and no longer a human threat.