Cell forces scrutinised to fight HIV

The forces that give a cell its shape have gone under the microscope to gain a better understanding of the effects of diseases like HIV.

After entering the cell, HIV is one of the viruses that prevent the cell from budding before eventually destroying the membranes of its contents.

By better understanding how membranes retain their structure, US researchers hope to shed light on how to disrupt the viral process.

William Klug from the California Institute of Technology said: "That's a different strategy than what is being done today to treat retroviruses and HIV in particular."

Scientists looked at the membranes of organelles like the nucleus, mitochondria and endoplasmic reticula using optical tweezers, which provides an attractive or repulsive force.

They then constructed a mathematical model which predicts the three-dimensional forces involved in creating and maintaining certain organelle membranes.

Findings were published yesterday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

There is currently no cure for HIV/Aids; however scientists have been studying the effects of genetically engineering with a positive outcome reported in a man with the virus in Germany.

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