Every human has viruses lying low within them. It鈥檚 highly likely that at some point, for example. HPV inserts copies of its DNA into the genome of cells, allowing it to hide away for decades, ready to activate and infect more cells if your immune system slips up. The consequences can be lethal: HPV can cause neck, throat, anal and cervical cancer.
The herpes simplex virus does a similar thing, adding one or more copies of its DNA to sensory nerve cells around the mouth or genitals. And several other common viruses also exploit this dastardly trick to hide away within you.
Until recently, the best we could do was help the immune system suppress any viral activity. With the development of the first gene-editing tools, researchers began to explore the possibility of destroying the viral DNA inside our cells, but progress has been slow and results mixed.
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Huge demand
Now, with CRISPR, the field is racing ahead. Several groups have shown that it is possible to target and destroy viral genes in human cells growing outside the body.
鈥淲e are all brimming with excitement,鈥� says Bryan Cullen of Duke University, whose team is working on treatments for several viruses, including herpes. 鈥淭here will be a huge demand if a cure is possible.鈥�
It should be easiest to target viruses that integrate themselves into specific tissues in a small area of the body, such as herpes simplex. Could it also work for HIV? The problem, Cullen says, is that HIV hides in memory T-cells, which are scattered throughout the body.
But it might not be necessary to eliminate HIV in all cells in one go, says Kamel Khalili of Temple University, whose team is already carrying out animal tests. Khalili hopes that a series of treatments, in combination with existing antiretrovirals, will allow the immune system to recover to the point that people with HIV can eventually be cured. His team鈥檚 aim is to make the treatment simple and cheap enough that it can be used in the resource-poor countries that have the most HIV-positive people.
Read more: 鈥�CRISPR: The gene-editing revolution on our doorstep鈥�
This article appeared in print under the headline 鈥淐ould it help cure diseases like AIDS and herpes?鈥�
