German study encourages Aids research

German scientists who reportedly cured a man of Aids with a bone marrow transplant have inspired US stem cell research.

The team reportedly made the breakthrough in an American man with Leukaemia and Aids living in Berlin.

In the 20 months following the transplant the unnamed 42-year-old patient had shown no sign of Aids.

A US team, which is working on similar research, said the German study offered "further proof" genetic engineering gave hope for a cure for Aids.

The Sacramento-based scientists have been working on giving human skin cells the same immune properties as stem cells to fight Aids.

Researchers from the UC Davis clinic were expected to present the success of a mouse model study to the American Society for Haematology in the US yesterday.

The team, led by stem cell researcher Gerhard Bauer, revealed the project could lead to the possibility of an Aids cure within the next five years.

He said: "Gene therapy offers real hope as a cure for Aids."

An estimated 33 million people were living with Aids last year, according to the World Health Organization.

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