Groundbreaking research at South Africa's Walter Sisulu University

MTHATHA, South Africa - April 11, 2013 - PRLog -- After two years of Walter Sisulu University's extensive work on effectively setting up its HIV/Aids Research Unit to meet the required standards in terms of resources which include staff and laboratories, the unit led by Professor Jimmy Chandia is ready to get its hands dirty.

The first large scale project is a ground-breaking look at whether South Africa, specifically rural Mthatha, can find a vaccine from the ANTI-TAT protein. The research project is underway and is being funded by the Italian government. About 50 participants from the health centres used by the Faculty of Health Sciences in Community Based Education and Service in Ngangelizwe, Mlakulo, Baziya, Mbekweni and Gateway clinic and the Department of Health are being voluntarily tested.

“This study precedes the actual vaccine trial against HIV. It involves HIV positive participants who are on antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) and those who are not on ARVs but are HIV positive,” explained Professor Chandia.

University looking at TAT Protein

He continued that they are looking for a protein within the HIV virus called the TAT protein that has been found in research conducted in Italy to be important in facilitating the duplication or multiplication of the virus in the body.

“It seems that if one can get something to act against this protein that will help to slow down the multiplication of the virus if not allow the virus to not multiply at all. In other words anything which works against this protein is a potential vaccine. In similar studies it has been found that negative people, those not infected by HIV, have high levels of what is called the ANTI-TAT protein, the hypothesis is therefore that those people are being protected by this ANTI-TAT protein,” explained Chandia.

Studies' results due June 2013

According to Professor Chandia, if they are able to prove that ANTI-TAT reduces the multiplication of the HIV virus, the ANTI-TAT protein may well be on its way to becoming the sought after vaccine. The unit believes that it will have concrete results on this promising study by June 2013.