The Evolution Of The Monkey Gene That Blocks AIDS

There is a gene in Asian monkeys that could have evolved as protectionagainst lentiviruses such as HIV, according to an article written byresearchers at Harvard Medical School that is published in theopen-access journal PLoS Pathogens.The well-characterized gene - TRIM5-CypA - is a hybrid of TRIM5and CypA, two genes that already exist. The hybrid produces a singleprotein that can protect from viral infections such the ones closelyrelated to HIV.

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Filed under: Genetics on March 3rd, 2008