AIDS

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of documented cases have occurred in the United
States, AIDS cases have been reported in about 162 countries worldwide. Sub-
Saharan Africa in particular appears to suffer a heavy burden of this illness.
No cure or vaccine now exists for AIDS. Many of those infected with HIV may not
even be aware that they carry and can spread the virus. It is evident that HIV
infection represents an epidemic of serious proportions. Combating it is a
major challenge to biomedical scientists and health-care providers. HIV
infection and AIDS represent one of the most pressing public policy and public
health problems worldwide.

Definition of AIDS

The U. S. CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL has established criteria for defining
cases of AIDS that are based on laboratory evidence, the presence of certain
opportunistic diseases, and a range of other conditions. The opportunistic
diseases are generally the most prominent and life-threatening clinical
manifestations of AIDS. It is now recognized, ...

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of certain white blood cells, called T4
lymphocytes. These cells play a crucial role in orchestrating the body's immune
defenses against invading organisms. It was presumed that this defect in AIDS
patients was acquired in a common manner. Then, in 1983, a T-cell lymphotropic
virus was separately discovered by Robert Gallo at the U. S. National Institutes
of Health and Luc Montagnier at France's Pasteur Institute. The virus was at
first given various names: human lymphotropic virus (HTLV) III,
lymphadenopathy-associated virus (LAV), and AIDS-associated retrovirus (ARV).
It is now officially called human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and considerable
evidence demonstrates that it ...

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