How does HIV affect the brain?
Dr. Dionna WilliamsResearchers around the world have been studying the HIV virus for years. But do we completely understand how it behaves and how far are we from finding a cure?
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The fact that we have yet to find a cure for HIV speaks to how difficult it is to research. But we are starting to learn more about the virus and how it affects the brain.
After decades of investigation, researchers now understand how the virus behaves once entering the body: it actually infects the brain within the first week of exposure and creates a reservoir inside organs where it can continue to replicate. Could this knowledge help us to better treat people living with HIV and potentially eradicate it altogether?
Dr. Dionna Williams, who has a background in neuroscience, immunology and pharmacology, joins us in The Garden to share her fascinating research on the virus and how novel personalised treatment approaches are being pioneered to improve patient outcomes.
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50 minutes
30 minute talk
20 minute Member Q&A
Dr. Williams is an Assistant Professor at Johns Hopkins University whose research aims to identify mechanisms by which HIV, drugs of abuse, and the therapies used to treat the virus impact the brain.