HIV/AIDS: A Comprehensive Overview of a Global Re-Emerging Infectious Disease

Marcus Parfitt
Medical Microbiology SBL222-01
11 November 2016

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HIV/AIDS, an infectious disease that continues to continually re-emerge throughout the
entire world, has the ability to haunt its victims with its often times extreme symptoms for an
entire lifetime. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, AIDS is defined as a
disease caused by infection with the HIV virus, which weakens the immune system as well as
increases the risk of certain infections and cancers (Wexler 15). HIV/AIDS has been shown to
affect any ethnic group in any age range. There are two strains of the HIV infection; HIV-1 and
HIV-2. HIV 1 is primarily found in Asia, Europe, and the Western Hemisphere, while HIV-2 is
most commonly reported in Africa. These difference between the two is simply that HIV-2
strains take much longer to produce symptoms, and this strain is much more difficult to contract.
In a study that reviewed the correlation between HIV and aging, it was found that more than 10
percent of the approximated 34.5 million HIV positive patients are over the age of 50, and it is
hypothesized that the age range will continue to grow. It is estimated that by the year 2030 that
70 percent of persons with HIV will be over the age of 50 (Wing 2016). There is no definite time
period to which one is infected with HIV and then experiences AIDS symptoms, however
symptoms normally present within two to eleven years (Wexler 8).
In 1981, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, otherwise known as the CDC,
reported that five men residing in California had been diagnosed with an unusual pattern of
infections that correlated with that of a compromised immune system (Wexler 1). Within two
years of the initial report, the number of these unusual infection patterns escalated dramatically,
especially within patients who were homosexual males. HIV infection cases spiked during the
1980s and then decreased afterwards. This was most likely the largest rapid outbreak recorded
(MMWR). Following this outbreak, the federal government funded a major public health effort
that was intended to understand and eradicate this disease that was affecting so many people at

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such a rapid rate (Hyde 459). This government funding supported further research, which led to
the naming of the disease by the CDC in 1982. The mysterious disease was termed AIDS, an
abbreviation for acquired immune deficiency disorder (Wexler 1). This new infectious disease
continued to bring great awareness throughout the entire world and resulted in the discovery of
the cause of this immune deficiency disorder. In 1983, a research team at the Pasteur Institute in
Paris, France, isolated HIV and identified it as the cause of AIDS (Wexler 1).
The HIV virus belongs to a particular class of viruses known as a retrovirus. The term
retrovirus is used to describe a virus the presents the reverse transcriptase enzyme. This enzyme
functions in reversing the usual patterns of translating genetic material (Wexler 2). Retroviruses
similar to HIV only contain RNA, or ribonucleic acid, for genetic material until the virus infects
the human host cells (Williams 323). Until the retrovirus comes into contact with a host cell, it is
simply inert genetic material. The virus must invade the host cells can hijack the replication
process of the cell. The viral reverse transcriptase transcribes the HIV RNA into DNA segments,
which are then integrated within the host genome. This integration allows easy and rapid
replication of the viral DNA within host cells (Wexler 2).
The HIV virus is typically diagnosed in patients through the presence of antibodies as
well as other laboratory testing methods (Williams 324). Conventional methods of diagnosis
often include a blood sample or oral fluid sample collected from the patient to identify the
presence of these antibodies (Wexler 24). HIV viral antibodies can be detected within the human
host from 3 weeks to 3 months after encountering the virus. This period of developing antibodies
is diagnostically termed the window period. Detection of these HIV antibodies is the most
common way to diagnose patients infected with HIV. Laboratory testing can be completed to
detect the presence of the HIV virus within a patient, however, it can become costly, especially

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for routine HIV testing (Williams 324). Other options for diagnosing the HIV virus include urine
samples and rapid tests, or even home tests where patients can test themselves in the comfort of
their own homes (Wexler 24).
Laboratory methods of testing include Complete Blood Cell Count/ Lymphocyte Count
(CBC), CD4+/ CD8+ T Lymphocyte Count, Viral Load Testing, The Western blot test,
Genotyping, along with other general tests. A CBC test is completed for those patients who are
already diagnosed with the HIV virus, because infection causes patients to be more susceptible to
leukopenia, lymphopenia, anemia, and thrombocytopenia. The CBC test is recommended to be
completed for patients with an HIV positive status once every 3-4 months, or more often if
changes in therapy treatment occur, or the patients clinical course becomes unstable (Williams
329).
CD4+ CD8+ T Lymphocyte testing is essential for evaluating the status of the immune
system. CD4+ levels average around 500 to 1600 cells per mm3, while in HIV infected patients,
the CD4+ levels drop slowly over time. However, CD8+ levels do not. The low ratio of CD4+
cells in comparison to CD8+ cells is a common indicator of the HIV infection, and a greater
difference is seen as HIV/AIDS progresses. The CD4+ CD8+ T Lymphocyte test is
recommended to be completed in three-month intervals fro most patients (Williams 329-330).
Measuring the amount of HIV RNA present in the plasma is a diagnostic test called Viral
Loading. This test is crucial for determining prognosis and is extremely important in monitoring
the response to antiretroviral therapy options. Once a patient is placed on a treatment plan,
testing should be completed one month after initiation of the treatment and then regularly every
three months afterwards. It has been found that patients prescribed combination antiretroviral

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therapy treatments present approximately a 50 percent decrease in HIV levels within the body
within just a few days of treatment (Williams 330).
A newly established method in diagnosing HIV infection in patients includes the
quantitation of HIV-RNA for diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, monitoring and assessment of
infectivity in HIV-1 infections. Altima HIV-1 Quant Dx assay is a new transcription mediated
amplification test. This amplification test is used to diagnose patients who are or may be infected
with HIV. The Aptima assay has proven to be approximately 90.2% accurate in the diagnosis of
HIV. Aptima is a sensitive, specific, precise test for measuring the HIV-1 viral loads within the
human host (Hatzakis et al 2016).
The Western blot test is used as a confirmatory test, and was introduced to the medical
field in 1987. This technique separates various HIV proteins from one another based on their
speed through a gel agar under the influence of electrical impulses. The gel that is used during
this test is called nitrocellulose, and it will bind to specific protein, eliciting a color response.
This testing method provides a positive, intermediate, or negative result. The presence of three or
more color responses confirms HIV infection, while if only one or two color changes result, the
test results are considered intermediate, and the patient should return for further testing in six
months. On the other hand, if there is no color response, the result is HIV negative. Although the
test is negative, it is recommended by physicians to return for further testing in six moths as well
to ensure correct results (Wexler 24).
Genotyping and General Tests are other methods used in the diagnostic process of HIV
infection. Genotyping measures the resistance to current antiviral treatments. The results of this
test guide the medical provider in choosing the appropriate treatment that will be the most
effective against a patients infection status. Also, general serological testing for syphilis,

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Hepatitis A, B, and C, and liver chemistry panels are completed during the initial diagnoses of
HIV. These tests are completed for patients who are sexually active and because of the high
incidence of concurrent hepatitis infection in HIV positive patients (Williams 330).
Rapid tests are also common among patients in both the clinical and nonclinical setting.
The FDA has approved several methods of Rapid-response testing. Some of these tests include
Chembio DPP HIV-1/2, Clearview COMPLETE HIV , Clearview HIV STAT-PAK,
OraQuick ADVANCE Rapid HIV Antibody Test, along with others. These rapid tests all are
designed to detect the presence of HIV antibodies, the same as most clinical laboratory testing
methods. These methods can take anywhere from less than two minutes up to 20 minutes to
receive results, and have been found to be as accurate as standard testing (Wexler 24).
When AIDS was first identified, it was immediately compared to the Black Death
pandemic that occurred during the 14th century. However, this was discovered to not be a
valuable comparison because the HIV virus is not as easily transmittable (Wexler 20). The HIV
virus is primarily transmitted through the exchange of bodily fluids, including semen ejaculated
from males, blood, and secretions of the cervix and vagina in women (Hyde 459). Sexual
intercourse including oral, vaginal, or anal sex with infected persons is the most common mode
of transmission (Wexler 20). In the United States during the earlier years of the epidemic, men
who had engaged in sexual intercourse with other men accounted for the majority of the HIV
infection cases (Hyde 459). HIV can be present in any anatomical compartment that contains
bodily fluids. With this in mind, semen is the proximal source of HIV transmission in male
patients (Anderson et al 2010). Men who identify as bisexual or gay estimated to be 83 percent
of HIV diagnoses among male patients in 2014 (cdc.gov). However, numbers of infected women
are rapidly growing, accounting for approximately 26 percent of new cases today. Worldwide, an

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abundant amount of new HIV infection cases that are reported result from heterosexual
transmission (Hyde 459).
Drug needles and syringes that have come into contact with HIV infected persons are
other modes of transmission of the HIV virus (Wexler 20). Injection and drug use results in
approximately 25 percent of reported HIV cases each year (Hyde 459). Because of this, The
Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act is currently in place in the clinical setting. This act is
designed to aid workers in the healthcare field in preventing needle stick injuries, especially
those that can transmit this non-curable infection to other patients (Williams 326).
HIV can also be transmitted from mother to child as well as during transplantation of
HIV infected organs or transfusion of infected bodily fluids, such as blood (Wexler 20-21). The
transmission of the HIV virus occurs between a mother and infant most often through breastfeeding. Although HIV has been recorded to be transmitted through breast-feeding, the benefits
of breast-feeding have been found to outweigh the risks when referring to this topic. This is due
to the fact that alternative nutrition options arent always available in some countries that lack a
variety of options (Wexler 21). On the other hand, bodily secretions and transfusions of bodily
fluids are extremely common in transmitting the virus. However, in a study conducted on
salivary inhibitors, it was found that HIV could not be transferred through salivary secretions
because a protein within human saliva blocks the virus which inhibits it from entering the hosts
system (Wexler 20).
There are no definite answers as to when symptoms will appear in infected patients.
However, through years of research and observation, it has been recorded that it takes
approximately ten years from initial exposure for the HIV virus to develop into the AIDS
infection. Within this approximated time, there have been three distinct stages of infection

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recorded; The Early Stage, The Middle Stage, and The Final Stage. The Early Stage begins when
the infection initially enters the human host (Hyde 461). Shortly after the virus enters the
bloodstream, the T4 cell count remains within normal limits, and the virus in undetectable. This
is due to the fact that the virus uses specific assays to detect the presence of anti-HIV antibodies
(Wexler 17). Patients within the Early Stage of infection are asymptomatic carriers of the virus.
That is, the patient may not express any symptoms indicating infection, and the patient may be
completely unaware they are infected. However, although symptoms of infection may go
unnoticed, the patient is still contagious during this time period, which is dangerous for the
people surrounding the infected individual (Hyde 461). It is during the Early Stage that the HIV
virus is the most transmittable due to the large quantity of virus within the blood. Towards the
end of the Early Stage of infection, some patients may develop symptoms similar to those of
mononucleosis, but these symptoms disappear within weeks. The mononucleosis-like symptoms
are referred to as an acute retroviral syndrome (Williams 327). Healthy host cells are being
destroyed as more and more of the virus particles are replicated. The Early Stage has been
reported to last for approximately five years (Wexler 19).
The next stage of infection, known as the Middle Stage, is most characteristically labeled
as the latent stage, because it is at this stage that the virus is dormant within the human host.
During this latent stage, the HIV virus still continues to replicate, but only at low levels, and still
produces little to no symptoms (Wexler 19). The T cell counts drop by half, resulting in
approximately 500 cells, and the immune system begins to fail (Hyde 461). Skin tests are likely
to show that the hosts cell-mediated immunological response is disintegrating as the infection
progresses. This marks the beginning of the deterioration of the immune system (Wexler 19).
Symptoms that may potentially develop within the time period of the Middle Stage of infection

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are not life threatening. These can include but are not limited to, swollen lymph nodes, night
sweats, diarrhea, fever, weight loss, unexplained fatigue, easy bruising or unexplained bleeding,
and persistent yeast infection in the throat and/or vagina (Hyde 461) (Wexler 19).
The transition from HIV to the AIDS disease is considered to be the sole indicator of the
Final Stage of infection. This occurs when the hosts immune system is so damaged that it can no
longer fend of infection on its own. During this stage, CD4+ T cell count drops below 200.
Between 500-1,600 cells is considered to be the normal levels within healthy individuals.
Another aspect of infection that occurs during this stage is the frequent appearance of
opportunistic infection. Consequently, it is during this stage that the risk of infection due to
opportunistic bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites and the possibility of cancer increase
dramatically (Wexler 19). One of the most common opportunistic infections within patients
within the Final Stage of infection is Pneumocysyis carinii (Hyde 461). Pneumocysyis carinii is
a lung disease that is caused due to exposure to a fungus (Wexler 19). It is also not uncommon
for toxoplasmosis, a parasitic infection, to affect the brain, while the Cryptococcus fungus
attacks the nervous system, liver, and skin during this stage as well. The complications and
consequences that arise from these infections often result in death, which is due to a
compromised immune system, not the HIV virus. Once a patient develops a severe opportunistic
infection, life expectancy is estimated at about one year without receiving any treatment (Wexler
20).
HIV, like many other infections, must invade the immune system in order to infect the
host. There are specific mechanisms to which HIV accomplishes this immune invasion. To begin,
the HIV virus contains a total of nine genes. Three of which form the structural components of
the virus that surround the genetic material and construct the outer surface of the viral particles,

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while the remaining genes function to regulate the genetic activities that are necessary to create
copies of the virus (Wexler 5).
One of the major virulence factors of the HIV/ AIDS disease is the ability to attract cells
that contain an attachment site known as the CD4 receptor. Cells that possess CD4 receptors
include lymphocytes and macrophages, in which the HIV viral particles hide to avoid the hosts
immune system. Once HIV enters the human host, the viruses primary target becomes the CD4
immune cells, in particular the CD4+ T cells, to which it attaches. Since CD4+ T lymphocytes
orchestrate immune functions, HIVs attack to these cells result in progressive impairment of the
hosts immune response. The HIV virus alters the normal function of the host cell when viral
particles fuse with the T lymphocyte and enter the host cell after attachment to the CD4+
receptor. Once inside the T lymphocyte, the viruss outer covering is destroyed to reveal the viral
RNA oh HIV.
At this point, the virus begins to replicate at an extremely rapid rate. Another prominent
virulence factor of HIV, a specific enzyme called reverse transcriptase, forces the host cell to
replicate itself using a piece from the HIV viral RNA, enables the newly replicated DNA to be
integrated within the host cells DNA. As a result of this reverse transcriptase virulence factor,
the host produces large amounts of viral particles, which spread through other host cells
(Williams 323).
Once a portion of the viral genome is integrated within the hosts DNA sequence, the
infected host cell continues to replicate an abundant amount of HIV infected cells, and begins to
translate viral proteins (Williams 323). The translation of HIV protease is yet another significant
virulence factor that assists in the ability of HIV to infect a host. The HIV protease protein is
required to activate other HIV proteins into their functional forms, including cell wall synthesis.

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The cell surface is developed, and the virus cell buds from the host cell, ready to infect other
healthy host cells. The virus begins to rapidly spread throughout the lymphoid system and the
body in its entirety, unless inhibited by treatment (Williams 324).
Latency is another virulence factor that makes the treatment of HIV difficult in diagnosed
patients. Once the HIV virus replicates, it has the ability to become latent within the host. During
this time, the HIV viral particles can cause no symptoms or even go undetected by some clinical
testing methods (Williams 324).
There is no known cure for the HIV/AIDS endemic. Although there is no cure, the HIV
virus has been found to not infect a certain fraction of the human population. Unfortunately, it
still remains unknown as to what mechanism allows for this immunity to occur. This theory of
human genetics having an effect on the susceptibility of the HIV virus provides new hope that
genetic analysis of the human host will contribute substantially to understanding the
pathogenesis of HIV and will lead to the development of new strategies to rid out the HIV/AIDS
pandemic (Fellay et al 2010).
Since there is no way to completely prevent infection of the virus, several therapeutic
intervention mechanisms are used in the clinical setting to prevent or delay opportunistic
infections. Patients are often required to take antiretroviral medications for the remainder of their
lives due to the lack of a cure. If the initial infection is diagnosed in the earlier stages, it is
recommended by health officials that the patient be placed on therapeutic treatment before the
hosts CD4 cell count falls below 200. In order to increase life expectancy of diagnosed patients it
is recommended that infected patients be prophylactically treated for opportunistic infections
such as Hepatitis A and B, Herpes virus, Mycorobacterium avium complex, and Pneumocystis

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carinii pneumonia. Other opportunistic infections that may arise due to the impairment of the
immune system are treated with appropriate medications (Williams 330).
Major advances have been achieved in devising a successful combined antiretroviral
therapy option for infected patients. One method is known as cART, and it has lead to the
sustained control of HIV replication. Although this means of treatment is successful, it is costly
as well as lifelong. It also is often times associated with partial immune restoration, chromic
inflammation and persistent viral reservoirs. New therapeutic strategies are continually being
investigated to serve as an adjunct to cARTs to potentiate immune responses that have the
capability of containing HIV pathogenicity, especially if cART is discontinued in the future. The
areas of study that have shown potential, as treatment options are cytokine and vaccine
strategies, using different viral or non-viral actors based on polyvalent mosaic antigens along
with highly conserved HIV envelope peptides, and broadly neutralizing antibodies or new
properties of antibodies. These new methods are thought to improve the control of immune
system homeostasis. All of the mentioned immunopathogenetic strategies appear to be promising
with TLR-antagonists. This is needed in order to bypass the complexity of immune system
activation, massive CD4 T cellos and viral persistence (Vieillard et al 2016).
Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy, otherwise known as HAART, is another aggressive
therapy treatment using multidrug therapy methods. This treatment is aimed at reducing the viral
load to an undetectable amount within the host. This strategy of using multiple medications has
been found to reduce viral loads within the bloodstream as well as increase CD4+ T lymphocyte
counts. These findings have resulted in prolonged life within infected patients. Some consider
this method to be the most effective line of treatment for HIV infected individuals. HAART has
been used widely throughout the clinical field since 1996, and has made monotherapy, or single

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drug treatment options, a seemingly outdated concept, with the exception of some cases, which
deal with pregnant women (Williams 333). HIV infected women, especially those who
experience any type of opportunistic infection, have been found to be at a higher risk of
transmitting the infection to their infant (MMWR). A research study conducted in Thailand
revealed a way to eliminate mother to child transmission (MTCT) of HIV. The prevention of
MTCT program was established. This program entailed a short course zidovudine (AZT) along
with a lifelong antiretroviral therapy regardless of the patients CD4 count. By 2015, the
integration of the MTCT prevention program decreased the MTCT rate to 1.9% in this area,
proving that the MTCT prevention that was put into place was a successful means of preventing
transmission of HIV (Lolekha et al 2016).
The Antiretroviral medications that HIV/AIDS patients are often prescribed are used to
inhibit the replication of the virus. These treatments do not kill the virus. Due to the fact that the
virus enters the host cell for replication, these antiretroviral medications are developed to
predominantly act upon specific functions of the viral particles alone. This is to keep the integrity
of the host cell (Williams 330).
Nonnucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NNRTIs), Nucleoside/ Nucleotide
Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors (NRTIs), Protease Inhibitors (PIs), and Fusion Inhibitors are
among the most popular antiretroviral medications used to inhibit function of the HIV virus.
Along with medicines, there have been a number of studies conducted that have resulted in the
finding of molecules, proteins, and other components that assist in HIV inhibitory functions. One
study in particular observed the activation of HIV-1 expression in latency infected CD4+ T cells
by using the small kinase inhibitor molecule, PKC412. The study aimed to reactivate the latent
HIV reservoirs with the intention of eradicating latenly-infected cells via the host immune

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system or through virus-mediated cell lysis. The study resulted in providing evidence that the
PKC412 molecule is a compound that has the potential for optimization as a latency-reactivator
to eradicate the HIV-1 infection in patients (Ao et al 2016).
NNRTIs and NRTIs are used to block the active site of HIV reverse transcriptase and
inhibit production of reverse transcriptase and viral replication respectively. Some examples of
NNRTI medications include delavirdine, efavirenz, and nevirapine. Some NRTI medications
include combivir, emtriva, epivir, and zidovudine (AZT) (Williams 330-331). In a recent study, it
was also discovered that several members of the TRIM protein family have antiviral defense
similar to NNRTIs and NRTIs. The TRIM11 protein is an HIV-1 capsid binding protein that
restricts reverse transcriptase by accelerating viral uncoating, and also has been found to block
some of the early events of HIV-1 replication (Yuan et al 2016).
Protease Inhibitors function in binding to the active site of the HIV protease enzyme,
which is responsible for cutting replicated strands of HIV. These inhibitors also interrupt
formation of mature viral particles as well as reduce viral replication, however, rapid resistance
to these medications can occur if not taken as directed. Examples of these medications include
agenerase, crixivan, and novir (Williams 332). Finally, Fusion Inhibitors function in blocking
fusion of the HIV-1 with the CD4+ cell membrane to prevent cell entry. An example of a Fusion
Inhibitor is enfuvirtide (Williams 332).
There are instances where antiviral interventions are being studied in attempts to prevent
the spread of HIV among adolescents, since the it has been found that the HIV virus tends to
infect most infected persons before the age of 25. There are several instances of extremely high
incidence rates in numerous geographical areas, and an even larger number who have limited
access to prevention services. Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis, otherwise known as PrEP, is the

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first antiretroviral based prevention intervention that has proven efficacy across many diverse
settings and populations. Along with that, regulatory and policy approvals on global and national
levels are occurring more and more frequently, and at a more rapid rate (Hosek et al 2016).
The epidemiology of the HIV/AIDS infectious disease is constantly being studied, in
hopes to discover to eliminate the virus in its entirety. Caused by the HIV virus, AIDS is, as far
as we scientifically can tell, will always end in fatality, even with effective therapy treatments.
Of all the diseases first discovered during the 20th century, AIDS has not only had the most
profound effect upon human illness and death, but it also ended the developed worlds
complacency regarding infectious disease. This non-curable disease has been studied and results
show that it exhibits great evolutionary potential. Initially, HIV was susceptible to a variety of
drugs; however, resistance mutations have enabled the virus to resist numerous drug options.
Alongside with HIVs extreme resistance to antibiotic treatment, its capacity for rapid mutation
and evolution hinders the development of an effective vaccine (Levin et al 2001).
The extremely long duration of the disease is imperative for understanding the intrinsic
rate in which HIV disseminates through a population. It has been hypothesized that when HIV
initially enters a host, and for several subsequent years afterwards, the virus epidemic is mainly
driven by early transmission, potentially occurring even before donors realize they are HIV
positive. The trend of HIV spreading throughout a population is much higher when the
population is nave and has never been exposed to this particular infection. The early
transmission of the virus to non-exposed environments is what drives the epidemic (Levin et al
2001).
HIV/ AIDSs relevance to life primarily encompasses two main categories; Host
Evolution and HIV Virulence Evolution. Host evolution states that as long as an infectious

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disease causes some infected persons to die before or even during reproductive years, or even
reduce the number of infected children the reproduce, natural selection will take over and favor
those who are less susceptible to the disease and its deleterious effects. When pertaining to the
HIV virus specifically, some evidence exists for inherited variations in the likelihood of infection
as well as in the progression of AIDS among HIV infected individuals. Since the resistance gene
for HIV is rare, it will take almost an entire millennia before any substantial fraction of the
population acquires the resistance gene (Levin et al 2001).
In regards to HIV virulence evolution, it will most likely occur rapidly, opposite of
human evolution. Because the HIV virus has already established drug resistance and the ability
to avoid the hosts immune system, there is no reason not to anticipate that HIV could evolve to
more extreme levels and form different levels of virulence within the human host. It has been
suggested that if an option such as HIV chemotherapy reduces the transmissibility of the HIV
virus, that treating individual patients has the capability to reduce the frequency of infection and
AIDS deaths in the general population (Levin et al 2001).
A recent outbreak of this infectious disease occurred in Indiana State in 2015. The
Indiana State Department of Health (ISDH) began an investigation when an Indiana disease
intervention specialist reported 11 confirmed HIV cases that all traced back to a community in
southeastern Indiana. It was found that the majority of the cases within the outbreak were
residents of the same community and were linked to syringe sharing partners injecting opioid
oxymorphone. As of April 21st, 2015, the ISDH had diagnosed 135 persons in the community of
4,200 persons, previous to this outbreak. The response to the outbreak resulted in the
implementation of programs and community outreach programs to assist in decreasing the spread
of the HIV infectious disease (Conrad et. al 2015).

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The HIV/AIDS infectious disease relates to Catholic Social Teaching in the sense of
guiding our hearts to be sources of compassion for one another. Several remarks have been made
in the past that assist us in becoming living witnesses to the Gospels message of inclusion and to
the love that has defined Christs ministry. As Catholics, we need to consistently follow our faith
as well as the conscience that guides it to realize that AIDS is an opportunity, and a call, for us all
to exercise faith in action throughout society, because no child of our creator should be subjected
to any type of discrimination. By coming together as one cohesive society and not neglecting any
member, Christ may assist us in overcoming the barriers that divide us the most so that we can
discover that ultimate source of unity through peace, love, and Christ. More than 1 million
Americans alone are living with the HIV/AIDS disease. As a community based on faith, we have
a moral obligation to lead through compassion and bearers of great love as we all respond to an
epidemic that has claimed the lives of so many of our brothers and sisters (Amodeo 2013).
When the HIV epidemic began, white males accounted for most of the diagnostic cases,
however that fact has drastically changed ever since. This development ties into the social and
economic aspects of this infectious disease. Socially, women have been found to need much
more recognition in AIDS research. Women have started to be included in the clinical trials for
treatment options, considering heterosexual contact constitutes a large amount of newly
emerging cases. Another social aspect of this infectious disease is that it is a multicultural
disease. For example, African Americans who reside in the United States constitute
approximately 42% of infected persons with AIDS (Hyde 464).
There is an urgent need for the development of prevention programs for other minority
groups, similar to those that have ben launched in the gay communities. These programs need to
focus on being culturally sensitive and should educate those who may not have had the privilege

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to receive such information on the topics of needle sharing and the risks of unsafe sexual
practices (Hyde 464).
HIV/AIDS is a continually re-emerging infectious disease that has struck the entire world
for centuries with its capabilities of infecting all humans of any age, race, or gender. Although
there is currently no cure to rid of this disease, several treatment therapy options and medications
are available to patients who may have been exposed to the HIV virus, in attempt to inhibit or at
least decline the rate of replication of the virus (Wexler 8). As scientific advances continue in the
years to come, we as a society may be able to remain hopeful in the discovery of a permanent
treatment for this re-emerging infectious disease.

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