can some people b exposed to HIV & never contract the disease because of stronger immune systems than others?

Question

just wanting to know bcuz some people can live with HIV and never develop AIDS, n some people it takes a long time to even develop the symptoms of HIV for quite a long time so i was just wondering if a person can b exposed to the HIV virus and never contract it bcuz of a very strong immune system. I personally think that one can b xposed and never get it regardless of how they r xposed to the virus. let me know what u think. but only if the person has a sronger than average immune system

Answer 1

there are always a few anomilies out there, and some people are probably a bit more resistant than others but i in general i dont think there are many people "immune" to the disease, if any at all. most people that live for decades live because of the drugs

Answer 2

It's not a question of an immune system being 'stronger.'
Let's get a few things out of the way to start. If you test positive for HIV, you are infected with the disease, and it is likely that at some point in your life (maybe years down the road, but sometime) you will convert to AIDS. If there is enough infiltration to cause a positive HIV test, an infection, then you are very likely to eventually develop AIDS.

There are two answers to your question. The first is we're making better drugs that slow the progression of HIV to AIDS, protease inhibitors are the big one that comes to mind here. Once you have an HIV infection, there is little that your body can do to stop it on its own.

Now, that said, I think what you're really asking, is if people can be resistant to HIV to begin with. We already know this is true. There is one specific genetic mutation in a surface protein which has been identified. This protein is necessary for the HIV virus to attach to host cells, infect and invade. In some people, this surface protein is shaped differently, and the HIV virus can't attach, and therefore can't infect it's target cells.

That being said, it isn't a question of someone's immune system being 'stronger' than another persons, as susceptability to HIV has nothing to do with it's function. I guess that's really just symantics, but still.

One thing to ammend though, it's important to note that the HIV virus was not originally a human virus, it was an animal virus. That being said, now that it is endemic in a huge number of people, it is adapting, and becoming a human virus. It's changing the way it resists drugs, invades cells, and replicates, and new strains are found all the time. So the protective mutation that some people have may not be good twenty years from now.

Answer 3

Yes, it is possible that someone with a stronger immune system could be exposed to HIV and not catch the virus. However, if someone is exposed on one occassion and does not catch the virus, this does not mean they should continue to trust that they will never catch the virus by future exposure. And they should continue to be tested, because it may take some time for HIV to become apparent in a blood test, and until they are absolutely certain, they should refrain from any activities that may expose others to their possible illness.

Answer 4

I've seen a couple of documentaries about this. There are some prostitutes in Africa that are immune to the HIV virus, even after several years in that occupation. Researchers believe if they can determine why they are immune they may be able to develop a vaccine.

Answer 5

The delay between catching HIV and progressing to AIDS (in the absence of treatment) is probably dependant on our genetics, as has been found with prion diseaases such as kuru; see:

http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/s938896.htm

Some people might never get HIV, though exposed; this depends on a mutation, as others mentioned eg see:

http://www.abc.net.au/rn/scienceshow/stories/2004/1075984.htm#

"Recent medical research shows that some effects of the Black Death have lasted into present times. Doctors researching the AIDS epidemic have discovered there are certain relatively rare people who will never come down with AIDS however much they're exposed to it. What these people have in common has been identified as a gene mutation known as CCR5-delta 32, mostly found in white Europeans and especially in Swedes. Doctors suspect that the ancestors of these people were precisely those who were infected and managed to survive the plagues of the 14th Century. The mutation does not appear to exist in African and East Asian populations that did not suffer the Black Death."

Answer 6

only if your immune system was 10000000000000000x as strong as the average one

Answer 7

This seems to be the case

Answer 8

As with other diseases, some people are 'carriers' only.

Answer 9

yes