HIV Handicaps Itself To Escape Immune System Pressure

HIV quickly mutates and evolves in response to pressure from the immune system. A set of three mutations that conceal HIV from particularly strong human immune systems slow viral replication considerably. However, once all three mutations are in place, the virus becomes "invisible" to the immune system and its abundance shoots upwards. The results demonstrate the importance of "killer" T cell immune responses in controlling HIV and shows that vaccines will need to stimulate responses against several parts of the virus.