Hiv Term paper

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HIV

Like the majority of the American population I have lived in a cloud of

ignorance about the HIV and AIDS crisis. I have never know anyone close to me

that has been infected with either of the two viruses. So when the option to

research something to do with sexuality arouse I felt this would definitely

further my education about a lethal killer that is roaming this earth. Since I

knew next to nothing about this topic I will start from the begging of the

disease and discuss where it's at now.

The HIV and AIDS disease has been around for awhile although no one has

been able to pin point it's origin. There are many theories floating around the

medical world but the most predominant theory "is that the virus first attacked

humans in Central Africa up to 100 years ago."(Kelly 524). It is said that the

virus stayed mainly in this closed society until many years later. Many say the

disease spread when international travel began to increase. The HIV and AIDS

viruses were believed to arrive in the United States sometime during the

nineteen seventies. It was a common disease between gay males and intravenous

drug abusers. Now it is well known that the viruses have been transmitted

through sexually, occasionally through blood and organ transplants.

The acronym HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus, where as the

acronym AIDS stands for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome. When someone has

contracted the HIV virus in almost all cases it produces the AIDS virus.

Apparently there has been a controversy that HIV really isn't the cause of the

AIDS virus, but careful research has proved without a doubt that it is the cause.

Socially the production of the viruses has caused a lot of hate, prejudice,

racism and above all homophobia.

Many people only talk about the late stages of AIDS but HIV does not

always produce the AIDS virus. If the HIV virus is caught in the early stages

it is possible to get treatment and delay the effects of the AIDS virus. When

an individual contracts HIV they can expect a fever, swollen glands, and

sometimes a rash. As the bodies system tends toward these symptoms the HIV

virus may still be undetectable. This first stage is called primary HIV disease

then moves onto chronic asymptomatic disease. With this stage comes a decline

in the immune cells and often swollen lymph nodes. As time moves on the

depletion of immune cells increases leaving the body open to opportunistic

infection. This is where normal sickness, disease, and other things in the

environment are now able to attack the bodies system. This stage is called the

chronic symptomatic disease. A very noticeable symptom is a thrush, which "is a

yeast infection of the mouth…"(Kelly 532). Also at this stage there can be

infections of the skin and also feelings of fatigue, weight loss, diarrhea, etc.

The actual period of the HIV virus really varies from person to person.

Normally with in a year or two the serve stages of HIV set in. At this point in

the victims life it is said they have progressed into the Acquired

Immunodeficiency Syndrome(AIDS). This status is established when one or more of

diseases have accumulated in the effected victims system. Many victims often

have lesions appear on their skin or they begin to acquire a pneumocystic

pneumonia. The final stage of the virus attacks the nervous system, "damaging

the brain and the spinal cord."(Kelly 532). This can lead to a number of

problems in the body: blindness, depression, loss of body control, loss of

memory. This can often last for months before the victim finally passes away.

Once the HIV virus enters the body it infects the "T" cell the

protectors of the immune system. Once they have attached to the T cell the HIV

molecule sheds it's outer coating and then releases the Viral RNA material into

the T cell. RNA and DNA are basically genetic blueprints for the body. When

the Viral RNA enters the T cell it begins transforming into the more complex

Viral DNA. This occurs because the virus brings along an enzyme with it that

causes the change. Modern medicine uses the drug AZT to put the transformation

on hold. After the Viral RNA changes to Viral DNA it then penetrates the

nucleus of the T cell. It connects with the cell DNA and awaits the opportunity

to produce more Viral RNA. When the victim comes under stress or infection the

cells break and become Viral proteins and begin making more Viral RNA. They are

then re-coated so they can regain entry into other T cells, mass producing the

virus throughout the immune system.

The HIV virus is of the retrovirus type, this is a class of viruses that

reproduces with the aids of an enzyme that it carries with it. This allows the

virus to transform the genetic RNA into DNA in the host cell. Basically when

the virus attacks a cell it tells it's self, to transform from the RNA to the

DNA form and then mass produce the Viral RNA. Unfortunately for modern chemists

and biologists the HIV strand is so complex with so many genetic codes it is

almost impossible to break down. The thing that makes the HIV virus so lethal

is that it attacks directly into the primary defense cells of the immune system

leaving it open for attack.

No one knows exactly how HIV destroys CD4 cells, they are white blood

cells that play an integral part in the bodies immune...

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