Research Article Open Access

HIV-1 Infection and Drug-Abuse in India-An Emerging Challenge

Mahendra Kumar1, Adarsh M. Kumar1, Raymond Ownby1, Deborah L. Jones1 and Drenna Waldrop-Valverde1
  • 1 University of Miami, United States

Abstract

India has a population of over 1 billion and the first cases of HIV-1 infection were reported from there in 1987. Since then HIV-infection has spread there very aggressively and at present it is reported that there may be 5.7 millions individuals infected with HIV. Unlike the western countries where the infected HIV-1 virus belongs to clade B, in India it is clade C. A number of structural and functional differences in these two strains can lead to very different pathogenesis. What we know about pathogenesis due to HIV-1 infection is mostly due to studies carried out in the west where the infecting clade is B. Studies on clade C are very few and to meet this challenge research on HIV-1 C clade infection should be carried out on priority bases. Recently NIH funded projects in India are attempting to initiate research on HIV-1 infection. The epidemiology and belief systems in India are additional challenges to carrying out HIV research. There is an urgent need to initiate multi-disciplinary research.

American Journal of Infectious Diseases
Volume 3 No. 4, 2007, 191-194

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3844/ajidsp.2007.191.194

Submitted On: 21 June 2007 Published On: 31 December 2007

How to Cite: Kumar, M., Kumar, A. M., Ownby, R., Jones, D. L. & Waldrop-Valverde, D. (2007). HIV-1 Infection and Drug-Abuse in India-An Emerging Challenge. American Journal of Infectious Diseases, 3(4), 191-194. https://doi.org/10.3844/ajidsp.2007.191.194

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Keywords

  • HIV
  • AIDS
  • India
  • Clade C