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I am puzzled why I have never seen, in any gay forum or gay news reports, the fact that there is a certain group of people who are lacking a specific gene that prevents them from becoming infected with HIV.
These people can have sex with thousands of HIV positive people and never get infected with HIV because of the lack of a certain gene that prevents HIV from infecting them.
When HIV was raging before and into 1995, there was no HIV medication that prevented most HIV patients from dying. Several of my friends died from HIV in 1995 and prior.
About that time, the CDC and other reliable medical sources (Medical schools) wrote articles about a lab test that would let a person know if they lacked a specific HIV gene receptor ( CCR5-Δ32 mutation).
Most who lack the HIV receptor gene were Northern European, however, some were not.
A friend and I hunted for various articles written about the lacking receptor gene. We also hunted for a lab that administered the test to see if we lacked the HIV gene receptor. You can find labs on the internet that administer this test. Some labs require a doctor's prescription while some do not.
Happily, my friend and I found a lab and took the test. It was determined that we lack the HIV receptor.
Needless to say, we were pleased that we could never become infected with HIV.
We are not completely Northern Europeans. We are a mixture of Northern European and a bit of Southern Europe.
If you are concerned about being infected with HIV, you might consider taking that test to see if you lack the receptor.
For convenience, next is a copy of a response that I got from the internet about the receptor.
Yes, a small but significant number of people lack a specific gene mutation, the CCR5-Δ32 mutationCCR5-Δ32 mutation mutation, which prevents HIV from infecting their cells, making them naturally resistant to the virus. This genetic variation, more common in Northern European populations, results in the absence of the CCR5 co-receptor that HIV uses to enter CD4+ T cells. Individuals with this mutation, even when exposed to HIV, cannot become infected with the virus.
AND
CCR5 Δ32 Mutation
The CCR5 Δ32 mutation is a deletion of 32 base pairs in the CCR5 gene, which encodes a protein called the chemokine receptor 5. This mutation is found primarily in people of European descent.
Function and Significance:
HIV Resistance:
The CCR5 protein is used by HIV to enter cells. The Δ32 mutation prevents HIV from binding to and entering cells, making individuals homozygous for this mutation (carrying two copies of the mutated gene) resistant to HIV infection.