Since the transmission of HIV and Hepatitis B virus (HBV) are so similar, individuals infected with one of these viruses are at a significantly increased risk for contracting the other.

Dr. Éric A. Cohen, a researcher at the IRCM (Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal), and his team will publish on Friday, July 13, in PLoS Pathogens a discovery that could lead to the development of a new class of drugs to combat HIV.

About 700,000 children worldwide are being infected with HIV every year, the majority of who live in developing countries. But there are many challenges in finding, testing, and treating these children, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. Cathy Majtenyi is attending an international AIDS conference in the Rwandan capital of Kigali and files this report for VOA.

New research conducted at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) suggests that it may be possible to develop a vaccine that protects against the myriad strains of the HIV virus. HIV is extremely variable, so an effective vaccine may need to stimulate the body to produce cross-reactive antibodies that will neutralize multiple viral strains.