The University of Waterloo in Canada has developed an implant for women that could protect against HIV and is also capable of significantly reducing the number of T cells—the cells the virus typically attacks in women's reproductive areas.
According to Emmanuel Ho, a professor at the Waterloo School of Pharmacy, some medications taken orally never reach the infected area, so this implant could provide a more effective way for T cells to stop responding to infections and more safely prevent transmission.
The study was published in the Journal of Controlled Release on March 13, 2018. This innovative implant uses a particularly clever strategy. When HIV enters a new organism, it primarily targets immune system cells, particularly the T cells that are sent to fight the invading virus.
The publication also explains that lymphocytes are mobilized to confront it; HIV infects them, allowing it to reproduce. This is the beginning of the infection process. But if T cells don't react to the arrival of the human immunodeficiency virus, if they remain silent and don't confront it, the number of cells that the HIV virus can infect is reduced.
Inside, the implant is loaded with hydroxychloroquine, a substance that seeps through the pores of the tube to be absorbed by the woman's area. So far, the results of the initial animal trials are quite positive; however, there is still a long way to go before this prevention method is effective in humans.
The Truth, April 23, 2019
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