Tag Archive: HIV immunity testing

Here is a good map showing who is more likely to be immune to HIV

Are  you Immune to HIV?

 

 

Where are you parents/ancestors from?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This map came from:   http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evosite/relevance/IA2HIV2.shtml

This map shows the percentage of people from each country who are immune to HIV.   13.7% of the population have the gene for immunity to HIV in Sweden, while 5.5 % have this gene in Italy.

 

If one parent has this CCR5 allele then a person is resistant to HIV, if both parents have the CCR5 gene then the offspring is “immune” to HIV.

 

Some people would like to know if they are “immune” or partially immune to HIV.

You can get tested to find out if you are immune to HIV at  http://www.delta-32.com/

 

 

People with two copies of the CCR5 delta32 gene (inherited from both parents) are virtually immune to HIV infection. This occurs in about 1% of Caucasian people. 

One copy of CCR5-delta32 seems to give some protection against infection, and makes the disease less severe if infection occurs. This is more common, it is found in up to 20% of Caucasians. 

Should everyone be tested for this mutation? Not necessarily. It would be dangerous to assume you are completely safe from infection if you have the CCR5-delta32 mutation.

It’s not an airtight guarantee of never getting AIDS. Some unusual types of HIV can use other proteins for entering cells. Rarely, there have been people who have two mutant CCR5 genes who have died from AIDS. 

Also, CCR5 is not the whole story of immunity to HIV infection. Some resistant people have been found who have two perfectly normal copies of CCR5. So other genes also contribute to slowing down HIV infection, and scientists are busy trying to identify them.

The above is from   http://brothersgrimmandgorey.blogspot.ca/2010/12/possible-hiv-cure.html

Why would you want to know if you are immune to HIV?

Why would you want to know if you are immune or partially immune to HIV?

Most gay men will know someone who has lots of unsafe sex but they are still negative it is likely because they are immune to HIV.   There are also lots of people who have been HIV positive for along time but are relatively healthy, these people are likely partially immune.

IF both your parents have the gene (CCR5) to make one immune to HIV then you will be immune.  IF one of your parents has the gene (CCR5) then you  will be partially immune to HIV.

 

IF YOU ARE HIV NEGATIVE – you may want to know you are immune because:

You can find out if you are immune to HIV or partially immune to HIV but getting a simple swab of your mouth.  The results will tell you if you are unlikely to become HIV + (partially immune), or if you will almost certainly will not become HIV+.  This knowledge may help you to have less anxiety about sex or some people may decide to have risker sex.

If one is partially immune then you will be a slow progresser, then the HIV virus will not have the same effect on you as someone who is not partially immune.

 

The immunity comes from not having receptors that allow the virus to enter the body.  One who is partially immune has fewer receptors so becoming infected is lessened and if one does get infected the disease will progress more slowly.

 

IF YOU ARE HIV POSITIVE – you may want to know you are immune because:

You will know if you are a slow progresser.   You may want to take less HIV medication to keep your viral load suppressed.  You may have peace of mind that you are not so likely to get sick from HIV.

A company called delta-32 will sell you the test to find out if you are immune to HIV.   Their website gives a lot of interesting information on HIV immunity.

Their website is:     http://www.delta-32.com/

Where to get tested for immunity to HIV/Who is immune to HIV?

http://www.delta-32.com/  This website will now give  you the test for HIV immunity.

The map below show where people are most likely to be immune to HIV.

Picture

The delta 32 mutation is more prevalent in some racial backgrounds than in others. Population studies of the Caucasian population of western European ancestry revealed that approximately 1% of people were homozygous (2 copies) for the delta 32 mutation and up to 20% of people were heterozygous (1 copy). Within the United States, Canada and Australia, the frequency is 8% to 10% within the Caucasian background individuals, but less than 1% in the Afro-American populations. There is also a very low frequency of the mutation among the population in eastern Asia but much higher towards western Asia.

HIV Immunity – Interesting stuff

What if you’re immune to HIV?
OPEN WIDE
What would you do with that knowledge?
Bill Coleman     Vancouver      Thursday, September 22, 2011
In the last decade, studies have shown that a very small percentage of people seem to be almost totally immune to HIV.In 2005, American journalist Randy Dotinga summarized the early findings like this: “An estimated one percent of people descended from Northern Europeans are virtually immune to AIDS infection… All those with the highest level of HIV immunity share a pair of mutated genes — one in each chromosome — that prevent their immune cells from developing a ‘receptor’ tht lets the AIDS virus break in. If the so-called CCR5 receptor — which scientists say is akin to a lock — isn’t there, the virus can’t break into the cell and take it over.”“To be protected,” Dotinga continues, “people must inherit the genes from both parents; those who inherit a mutated gene from just one parent will end up with greater resistance to HIV than other people, but they won’t be immune.”One study from 2001 in Science Daily reported that persons with the CCR5 gene from only one parent “had a 70 percent reduced risk of HIV infection.”Reports that I have read suggest that between one and three percent of Northern Europeans are “immune” overall, and about 10 to 15 percent have greater resistance to HIV. So it seems as if a few people are genetically predisposed to block the virus from their bodies almost, but not quite, 100 percent of the time. We just don’t hear about them very often.Thousands of organizations around the world broadcast HIV messages on a regular basis, but very few of them talk about immunity, probably because they’re concerned that some people might take the possibility of immunity as a licence to practise unsafe sex.Two organizations were so alarmed they reportedly pressured a genetic testing company to stop offering a CCR5 test to gay men. A 2007 brief from the Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations describes an Australian company, delta32.com.au, that advertised CCR5 testing on gaydar.com.au but closed its website after receiving complaints about the test being offered to gay guys.

I found links to other websites that test for the CCR5 gene, but they too have closed down or did not reply to my emails. Still, the test is available to the public.

But before we discuss where to find it, there are a few important questions to consider: Would you want to know if you are immune to HIV? What would you do with that knowledge?

Would you stop using condoms?

Would you believe someone who tells you they’re immune to HIV so they don’t have to use a condom to fuck you? (What about other STIs?)

If you are an HIV-positive guy, would you want to know if you had one of the genes that make it less likely to have complications from HIV?

How much would it be worth to you to find out if you are immune to HIV?

These are all interesting and difficult questions. But I think the real question is: should you have the right to know that you might be immune to HIV?

Is it better that we not know that HIV immunity exists? Does this make a better and safer society?

I have no clear answers. But I tend to believe that honesty and transparency make for a better society. I do not think there are many times that hiding information from the public is a good idea.

So I did a great deal of searching online to find someplace where you might find out if you have the CCR5 gene and, if you do, whether you have it from one parent (partial immunity) or both (almost complete immunity).

There is a company in the US called 23andme that does a broad range of genetic tests, including testing for the CCR5 gene. To order the kit and for instructions on how to send them a saliva sample, go to  23andme.com/store. The test costs $209 (US). To see an example of the report you will receive, look at: https://www.23andme.com/health/resistance-to-hiv-aids/.

I assume there are other places that test for HIV immunity, too, but I could not find them. I hope that readers will post addresses of other places, if they find them, on xtra.ca as a comment to this column.

Do I think that, armed with the knowledge of immunity, people might practise more unsafe sex? Probably.  Is it their right to make that decision for themselves? Yes, that’s always been our right.