article_snippet.sent: HIV specialists and network security experts at University College London (UCL) worked together to build a model for this 'hybrid spreading' which accurately predicted patients' progression from HIV to AIDS in a major clinical trial - and say early treatment is key to staving off AIDS.
article_snippet.sent: Researchers creates a model 'hybrid spreading' which accurately predicted patients' progression from HIV to AIDS in a major clinical trial - and say the spread was similar to a computer virus .
article_snippet.sent: HIV researchers face a similar problem.
article_snippet.sent: Detailed sample data from 17 HIV patients from London were used to verify the new model, showing that hybrid spreading provides the best explanation for HIV progression and highlighting the benefits of early treatment.
article_snippet.sent: Co-senior author Professor Benny Chain, of UCL, said: 'The number of HIV cells in the bloodstream is always relatively low, and the new model shows that HIV spread through the bloodstream alone would not be enough to cause AIDS.
article_snippet.sent: It is likely that when HIV gains a foothold somewhere with a high T-cell population, such as the gut, the new model uses a cell-to-cell transfer mechanism to efficiently spread directly between cell-to-cell.
article_snippet.sent: As such, if HIV has already spread to an area rich in T-cells by the time treatment begins, preventing an area rich in T-cells spread through the bloodstream will not stop AIDS. '
article_snippet.sent: the new model suggests that completely blocking cell-to-cell transfer would prevent progression to AIDS, highlighting the need to develop new treatments.'
article_snippet.sent: Laboratory research, led by Dr Jolly, has previously shown that some drugs are better than others at stopping HIV from spreading directly between cells.
article_snippet.sent: However, it's not possible to directly measure cell-to-cell spread in patients because it takes place inside internal organs.
article_snippet.sent: Dr Jolly said: 'With the new model, we should be able to assess the effectiveness of drugs against different modes of HIV spread in real patients. '
article_snippet.sent: the new model provides strong evidence that cell-to-cell spread is an important part of HIV spread, and we hope to show this directly in future animal studies.'.
highlights_snippet.sent: New model accurately predicted patients' progression from HIV to AIDS .
  