researchers at the University of Pennsylvania are adapting patients' own immune systems to give them the defence offered by the CCR5 delta chemokine receptor .
Millions of T-cells were taken from the blood and grown in the laboratory until the doctors had billions of cells to play with.
The team then edited the DNA inside the T-cells to give them the shielding mutation - known as CCR5-delta-32.
About 10 billion cells were then infused back in, although only around 20% were successfully modified.
When patients were taken off their medication for four weeks, the number of unprotected T-cells still in the body fell dramatically, whereas the modified T-cells seemed to be protected and could still be found in the blood several months later.
Millions of T-cells were taken from the blood and grown in the laboratory until the doctors had billions of cells to play with.
The team then edited the DNA inside the T-cells to give them the shielding mutation - known as CCR5-delta-32.
About 10 billion cells were then infused back in, although only around 20% were successfully modified.
When patients were taken off their medication for four weeks, the number of unprotected T-cells still in the body fell dramatically, whereas the modified T-cells seemed to be protected and could still be found in the blood several months later.
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