HIV-1 is the virus mostly responsible for human AIDS.

As recently reported in the April 20, 2007 issue of the journal Cell, scientists have been able to identify a relatively abundant molecule in the human blood -called VIRUS-INHIBITORY PEPTIDE or VIRIP - which has been found to be effective in blocking HIV-1.

Moreover, they showed that a few amino acid changes in the fragment enhanced its antiretroviral potency by two orders of magnitude.

VIRIP and its derivatives remained effective against drug-resistant HIV strains, making them "highly promising for further clinical development.

Existing antiretroviral inhibitors being used for HIV treatment can become HIV resistant over time, not to mention the severe side effects.

The group of researchers from University of Ulm in Germany and their collaborators (IPF PharmaCeuticals GmbH and Hannover Medical School) found that in cell cultures, HIV-1 does not easily develop resistance to VIRIP and that some derivatives of the peptide are highly stable in human blood plasma and are nontoxic even at exceedingly high concentrations.

Results of this study could lead to new targets in HIV inhibition and the development of another class of drugs in the fight against AIDS.

Read the full report at Nature News and Science Daily.