• One in 250 Americans is now infected with HIV.
• Heterosexual transmission is the third leading means of acquiring infection.
• Of all reported cases, 54 percent have resulted in death.

PROGRESS IN MEDICAL RESEARCH

AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome is a relatively new viral disease, discovered in 1981, which knocks out the immune system of its victims, leaving them defenseless against certain infections and cancers. AIDS primarily affects homo-sexual men, intravenous drug users, recipients of blood products, and the sexual partners and children of people in these groups. The average incubation period is about ten years.

How has animal research helped progress on AIDS?

The virus that causes AIDS is a member of the family called retroviruses. The entire body of knowledge on retroviruses is derived from research with animals which were found previously to be infected with retroviruses. The identification of the virus that causes AIDS in humans would not have been possible without the animal research that preceded it. Animal research has also led to the discovery of a virus in monkeys related to the human AIDS virus. This virus, called simian immunodeficiency virus or SIV, is the monkey counterpart of the human AIDS virus. SIV promises to be an important tool in the development of vaccines for the prevention of AIDS and in the development of drugs for the treatment of AIDS.

Is animal research with AIDS still needed?

Animal research is our most promising tool for the prevention and treatment of AIDS in the future. Vaccines have historically been mankind's most effective weapon against viral diseases and animal research has played a key role in the development and testing of every virus vaccine currently in use. For example, research using monkeys was very important for the development of the polio virus vaccine and each lot of polio virus vaccine is still tested for safety and efficacy in monkeys prior to distribution. Animal research is needed for the rapid development of safe and effective vaccines and drugs against AIDS.

What lies ahead?

Prevention of infection is our best hope for stemming the rapidly increasing incidence of AIDS. A vaccine will be developed only through animal research with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and SIV viruses. For those already infected with HIV, effective drugs will hopefully be developed to decrease the percent of infected individuals who go on to develop AIDS and to ameliorate the severity of the disease. For these advances to continue, research is the key.