Foreign media said that researchers at the University of Jaén in Spain have discovered two genetic variants that can protect the body from infection by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Experts found that some people are born resistant to AIDS despite being exposed to the virus, and the reason they don’t get sick is because a set of genes inactivates the HIV virus, Spanish newspaper Abesse reported on Jan. 30 on its website. Identifying their gene sequences will help develop new treatments for AIDS. The findings were published in the British journal Genetics and Immunity. Experts found that the genetic variants C4BPA and CR2 can protect the body from HIV infection. To do this, the researchers examined the genomes of people who engaged in risky behavior – high-risk behaviors such as heroin use, to be exact – but were not infected with HIV for years, trying to discover why they did not have the disease. The researchers focused on a set of genes that they believed to be protective. Project leader Antonio Caruz, a professor of genetic immunology at the University of Jaén, said the results showed that these genes were not found to be protective. Caruz said the results revealed that these people had an innate immunity gene pathway, meaning they had a set of genes that could inactivate the HIV virus. Although this set of genes is identical to all genomes, some people produce variants of the gene that operate differently, Caruz explained. He said, “It’s a polymorphism, which means it’s a different variant of the same gene that determines blood type and eye color.” The innovation of the study was the discovery of two genetic variants, for which the researchers, in collaboration with two hospitals, conducted a genomic analysis of 450 people worldwide who belonged to a population at high risk of AIDS but did not have the disease. In addition, the researchers sent the results obtained in Andalusia, Spain, to Italy, where, in collaboration with the University of Milan, they demonstrated that one of the protective genetic sequences, CR2, was also present in another female high-risk group, the spouses of AIDS patients who did not develop the disease. Although they were at risk of transmitting HIV through sexual channels, they were not infected, proving that a certain gene variant protected them from infection. The researchers point to the possible medical implications of this finding. These genes are involved in capturing the virus hiding in antibodies, which means that they will influence the patient’s response to the vaccine, meaning that the vaccine’s ability to work will depend on the person’s genetic type. For this reason, experts emphasize that patients could be classified according to their genetic type in order to improve the effectiveness of the treatment.