Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2004. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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United Press International - Friday, July 30, 2004
Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center found a protein called Apobec3G, which they think shows potential to shed light on the genetic mechanisms of HIV prevention. The protein defends cells from invasion by HIV by causing mutations in the genetic material within the virus.
In response, however, HIV produces a protein that binds to Apobec3G and targets it for destruction. Such conflicts, the researchers said, are called genetic arms races and tend to put pressure on both the virus and the body to evolve new ways to outsmart and overcome each other.
When the researchers compared human Apobec3G genes with those of distant primate relatives, they found, to their surprise, that the protein began to evolve in response to such Darwinistic pressure more than 30 million years before HIV-like viruses first infected primates, an event that occurred an estimated 1 million years ago.
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