HIV can now be replicated in mouse cells. Because we know so much about the genetics and immunology of mice, the advance should accelerate our understanding of how the virus behaves, and boost the development and testing of HIV vaccines and drugs.
Mattija Peterlin of the University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues genetically engineered mouse cells to contain the human protein hp32, which HIV depends upon to process its genome and reproduce (Nature Cell Biology, vol 7, p 611). The team is now creating live mice with the human gene, and looking to enhance infection rates of mouse cells…
