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Scientists have made an early but important development in the fight against HIV.。

For the first time, a team of researchers has shown that they can remove HIV type 1 (HIV-1) from infected mouse cells using a powerful gene-editing tool. By removing DNA of the deadly virus in rodents, they also stopped the virus from replicating. 。

While a permanent cure for HIV in humans remains a ways off, the new study is a major step toward achieving that goal, according to scientists at the University of Pittsburgh and Temple University's Lewis Katz School of Medicine. 。

SEE ALSO:Scientists see early progress on potential HIV cure 。 The journal。 Molecular Therapy。

published the team's findings on Wednesday.。

Credit: molecular therapy
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For their study, researchers used CRISPR/Cas9, a tool that enables scientists to edit parts of the genome -- our full genetic material -- by removing, adding, or altering sections of the DNA sequence.。

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The new work builds on an earlier proof-of-concept study that involved genetically modified, or "transgenic," mice and rats. After incorporating the DNA of HIV-1 into the genome of every tissue of the animals' bodies, the team found it could delete targeted fragments of HIV-1 from the genome in most tissues. 。

In the first model, researchers again used transgenic mice to confirm their previous findings. The team genetically inactivated HIV-1 in the mice, thus reducing the RNA expression of viral genes by 60 to 95 percent. That means they stopped RNA, which act as a genetic messenger, from relaying the toxic information.。

A scientist in China worker performs an HIV test at a lab in Shanghai.Credit: china photos/Getty Images 
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For the two other models, scientists studied mice with actively replicating HIV infections and mice with latent infections that lie dormant within the cells.。

Mice with active infections had EcoHIV, the mouse equivalent of human HIV-1. Using CRISPR/Cas9, researchers were able to block replication of the virus and show they could potentially prevent systemic infection -- marking the first evidence that this method can eradicate the virus.。

For the latent infections, the team studied "humanized" mice that had been engrafted with human immune cells, including T cells. (People with HIV/AIDS have a devastatingly low number of a particular type of T cell.) The mice were also infected with latent HIV-1.。

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