It's the scourge of our time. And what it does is pretty scary, too.
HIV itself doesn't kill you; it lets other infections do the dirty work.
The virus attaches to immune system
cells, particularly the helper T cells, which regulate much of the
body's immune response. From there, the retrovirus uses your cells to
replicate, killing many of those infected host cells in the process.
HIV takes time to do its work: years
can pass before the virus wreaks enough havoc to cause AIDS, the
syndrome that inspires fear worldwide. Though antiretroviral drugs can
prolong life and delay the onset of AIDS, they're often prohibitively
expensive, meaning that many patients are left to succumb to the
opportunistic infections that will ravage their weakened bodies.
Imagine going up against pneumonia,
tuberculosis, MRSA, herpes viruses, skin infections and even common
respiratory ailments with no ability to fight back.
Now that's scary, and it'll make you appreciate how amazing your (healthy) immune system really is.
See more ; http://science.discovery.com/life-earth-science/10-infectious-diseases.htm
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