Researchers at the University of Alberta have discovered a new reason why infected people cannot be completely cured of HIV.

According to a press release published on the MedicalXpress website, the researchers found that in patients with HIV, the immune T-killer cells responsible for identifying and destroying cells infected by the virus contain very little or no specific protein CD73. CD73 is responsible for the migration of immune cells, and its deficiency makes finding and destroying HIV-infected cells ineffective.

CD73 depletion is partly related to chronic inflammation, which is often experienced by people with HIV infection. Inflammation leads to increased levels of microRNAs in cells and in the blood. MicroRNAs bind to matrix RNAs to block their mediated CD73 protein synthesis.

This mechanism also explains why people with HIV infection have a lower risk of developing multiple sclerosis.

Targeting CD73 could be the basis for a new type of therapy for patients with multiple sclerosis, the scientists say.