Bananas will help develop a cure for AIDS
Last reviewed: 20.05.2018
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At the University of Michigan, a team of specialists has found a unique tool that will help in the treatment of many infections, including hepatitis and HIV. At the heart of the new drug is a normal banana and experts suggest that the new drug will be widely used in antiretroviral therapy, as well as help protect people from the most dangerous diseases.
The basis of the drug lectin - protein, which is contained in bananas. For the first time this protein was detected several years ago, today many specialists consider it as a basis for drugs from AIDS. Previously, lectin-based drugs caused severe side effects, but the new version of the protein, according to American scientists, will not only help reduce the number of unwanted reactions of the body, but also effectively fight against viruses.
A new version of the protein (BanLec) is attached to sugar molecules that are present on the surface of the most dangerous viruses, and neutralizes them, as a result, the human immune system easily copes with them.
Experiments scientists conducted on laboratory rodents and improved protein BanLec could stop the spread of the influenza virus, while not causing severe reactions of the body. In addition, the protein was tested on tissue and blood samples, and the results exceeded all expectations - BanLec destroyed viruses of hepatitis and HIV. According to scientists, the protein is able to cope with the Ebola virus, as the molecules of this virus also have sugar, which reacts to BanLec.
Specialists noted that BanLec is a modified version of the compound contained in bananas, so the use of bananas will not have such a positive effect on human health and will not protect a person from the flu, and even more so AIDS.
AIDS to date is one of the most common diseases, the treatment of which has not yet been invented. But in Texas, a method has been developed that will greatly facilitate the diagnosis, especially when resources are scarce. In remote regions it is quite difficult to control the amount of white blood cells responsible for the immune response in the body, and specialists have modified a printing device that prints blood cells. The patient takes blood, which is then mixed with magnetic balls and placed in a printing device. The printer does not print vertically as usual, but horizontally, except for this, a magnetized slide is used for printing instead of a regular sheet of paper. White blood cells are attracted to the slide, the remaining cells (the number of which does not matter in this diagnosis) flow into a container that is attached from below. Using a microscope, specialists study the slide and count the number of white cells in the blood sample, and then use the standard mathematical equation to calculate the total number of cells in the body. The whole procedure takes about 15-20 minutes. Controlling the number of white blood cells is necessary to determine the viral load in the body, this test is extremely important for patients with HIV.
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