Scientific American Magazine

In their first collaborative article the investigators who discovered HIV introduce a single-topic issue on AIDS. They recount the discovery and offer prospects for vaccine, for therapy and for the epidemic

HIV is genetically complex. An array of regulatory genes enables it to remain latent or replicate at various rates. This intricate control may underlie key features of the disease

The AIDS virus is not unique. It has relatives in man as well as other primates. Studies of related viruses indicate that some have evolved disease-free coexistence with their animal hosts

In 1981 Federal officials noted that a rarely prescribed drug was being dispensed more often. It was the first sign of the AIDS epidemic. By 1992 there will probably be 365,000 cases in the U.S.

Reports to the World Health Organization suggest that at least five million people worldwide are infected by the AIDS virus and a million new cases of AIDS are likely within the next five years

The human immunodeficiency virus causes a spectrum of disease that culminates in AIDS. Early detection of HIV infection, often years before symptoms emerge, is key to prolonging health and life

A key finding of AIDS research is that infection begins when HIV binds to a molecule called CD4 on the target cell. Knowledge of that interaction may help in developing therapies or vaccines

One drug-AZT-is already in clinical use. New knowledge of HIV makes it possible to design drugs that interrupt specific phases of the viral life cycle. More effective therapies are on the way

Several candidates are being tested and more are on the way, but success is far from assured. The life cycle of the virus and the logistics of AIDS vaccine testing make HIVa foe without precedent

AIDS exposes the hidden weaknesses in human society; how the epidemic is dealt with will have a profound effect on society's future. A crucial issue is protection from discrimination