HIV Advance

Jennifer Mathews: In a small lab in Philadelphia, AIDS researchers have unlocked what they are calling a small miracle. Dr. Bruce Levine: What we're hoping to do is to lock all the doors to the cells so that HIV can't get in. And if it can't get in after a certain time, it will just die. Jennifer Mathews: That's his research in a nutshell, but Bruce Levine's new way to boost the immune system is much more complex. Dr. Bruce Levine: We're taking the cells out of the body, bringing them into the lab, activating them with these magnetic beads with the antibodies. Jennifer Mathews: Then the activated cells are injected back into the body. Dr. Bruce Levine: That causes two things: the cells grow and also it removes a receptor. Jennifer Mathew: So far, it seems to be working. Dr. Bruce Levine: What we saw was a significant and sustained rise in CD4 T-cell count. Jennifer Mathews: Those T-cells help the immune system function. Gene was one of eight people in the study. Before treatment, his CD4 T-cell count was less than 500, well below the normal count of 800 to 1,200. Gene: As the dose of the infusion increased over time, my T-cell count went up. I think the highest that was measured was like 900, something. Jennifer Mathews: And it's stayed up. Gene: For the first time, I enrolled in a 401K plan. I recently changed careers because I just feel like I'm going to be around. Jennifer Mathews: Gene, now faces his future with new hope. This is Jennifer Mathews reporting.