SEATTLE
(AP)
—
Test
results
from
an
experimental
vaccine
to
treat
HIV
patients
is
showing
promising
results,
which
have
prompted
researchers
to
double
the
number
of
volunteers
involved
in
the
international
study.
The
vaccine
is
the
most
promising
in
20
years,
say
scientists
with
the
international
HIV
Vaccine
Trials
Network
based
here.
They’ve
found
much
stronger
immune
responses
than
in
earlier
tests
and
discovered
that
the
vaccine
may
protect
against
more
types
of
the
virus,
thereby
providing
possible
broader
application.
“We’re
really
excited
about
it,”
said
Dr.
Julie
McElrath,
a
Fred
Hutchinson
Cancer
Research
Center
scientist
who
directs
the
network
lab
program
and
heads
the
Seattle
vaccine
clinic.
“It’s
the
one
out
in
front.”
The
network
plans
to
double
its
number
of
volunteers
from
1,500
to
3,000
internationally,
increasing
the
number
locally
from
50
to
100.
Testing
of
the
vaccine,
called
the
Step
Study,
will
continue
for
nearly
five
years.
If
shown
to
be
truly
effective
against
the
virus,
it
could
be
widely
available
to
the
public
in
about
seven
years,
McElrath
told
the
Seattle
Times.
NEW
YORK
—
A
newly
discovered
cellular
pathway
may
help
scientists
find
a
way
to
develop
a
new
type
of
vaccine
against
HIV,
HealthDay
News
reported.
After
HIV
infection,
disease
progression
is
linked
to
the
decreased
presence
of
plasmacytoid
dendritic
cells,
which
are
major
producers
of
interferon,
an
immune
protein.
Researchers
at
New
York
University
told
HealthDay
that
high
numbers
of
such
cells
are
linked
to
successful
control
of
HIV.
In
a
new
study
published
online
in
the
Journal
of
Clinical
Investigation
this
month,
scientists
conclude
a
decrease
in
human
plasmacytoid
dendritic
cells
follows
infections
suffered
by
patients
who
are
HIV-positive,
and
corresponds
with
a
high
viral
load
and
susceptibility
to
infections,
the
NYU
team
reported.
FORT
LAUDERDALE
—
Palm
Beach
County
commissioners
last
week
agreed
to
offer
domestic
partner
benefits
to
employees,
but
the
health
coverage
will
cost
more
for
such
partners,
the
Sun-Sentinel
reported.
Gay,
lesbian
and
heterosexual
unmarried
workers
will
be
able
to
receive
benefits
similar
to
married
spouses
of
employees,
but
they
will
have
to
pay
a
share
of
monthly
premiums
that
the
county
covers
for
heterosexual
couples
that
are
married.
The
extension
of
benefits
begins
Jan.
1.
Commissioners
voted
4-3
for
the
measure,
which
means
that
instead
of
paying
$91
per
month
that
a
county
employee
pays
for
a
married
spouse’s
health
coverage,
those
with
domestic
partners
would
pay
$440.97
per
month
to
obtain
health
coverage
for
their
partner,
according
to
Nancy
Bolton,
county
risk
management
director.
Gay
rights
activists
said
the
commission’s
move
is
a
“great
step,”
but
the
benefits
should
not
cost
domestic
partners
any
more
than
other
county
workers’
spouses.
WASHINGTON
—
Surveys
show
that
the
Internet
is
a
major
source
of
sex
education,
whether
accurate
or
not,
for
teenagers
in
the
United
States,
USA
Today
reported.
Researchers
at
an
American
Academy
of
Pediatrics
meeting
last
week
reported
that
about
half
of
teens
search
online
for
health
information.
Most
teens
have
more
questions
about
sex
than
any
other
topic,
researchers
noted.
Gay
teens
in
particular
are
believed
to
utilize
the
Internet
since
many
are
unsure
or
are
hiding
their
sexual
orientation
and
they
can
obtain
data
online
anonymously.
Answers
they
find
on
the
Web,
however,
range
from
scientific
to
dangerous
misinformation.
LOS
ANGELES
—
AIDS
inflicts
a
selective
pattern
of
destruction
on
certain
brain
regions,
according
to
an
imaging
study
that
shows
the
pattern
for
the
first
time,
Xagena
Medicine
reported
on
its
Web
site.
The
study,
done
at
the
University
of
California
—
Los
Angeles
and
the
University
of
Pittsburgh,
shows
that
AIDS
harms
brain
sections
that
control
motor,
language
and
sensory
functions.
Magnetic
resonance
images
or
MRI
illustrate
the
damage
via
high-resolution
3-D
color
scans.
The
research,
reported
in
the
Proceedings
of
the
National
Academy
of
Sciences,
gives
scientists
a
new
way
to
measure
the
impact
of
AIDS
on
the
living
brain.
“Two
big
surprises
came
out
of
this
study,”
Paul
Thompson,
first
author
and
at
the
David
Geffen
School
of
Medicine
at
UCLA,
told
Xagena.
“First,
that
AIDS
is
selective
in
how
it
attacks
the
brain.
Second,
drug
therapy
does
not
appear
to
slow
the
damage.
The
brain
provides
a
sanctuary
for
HIV
where
most
drugs
cannot
follow.”
