Day: May 4, 2019

Season 2: Invasions – A Cure for HIV: One Formidable FoeSeason 2: Invasions – A Cure for HIV: One Formidable Foe

Although we’ve had great breakthroughs in pharmaceutical treatments for HIV, the virus remains one of the scariest diseases out there, because as of yet, there is no surefire cure. But as of this month,we have found a cure… for exactly 2 people in the history of the world. Can the experimental treatment used on the 2 patients who have had the virus wiped from their system be used to help the 37 million people living with the disease today? Should it be?

In Part 1, K+K discuss why an HIV infection is such a big deal for your body, how it goes about infiltrating your cells, and the diabolical ways it makes itself so hard to get rid of. This knowledge will set you up to understand the next episode, when K+K examine the London Patient, and how doctors used the patient’s immune system against itself to eradicate the virus.

For such a formidable foe, he sure is a tiny guy.

 

Season 2: Invasions – Body SnatchersSeason 2: Invasions – Body Snatchers

If you’re a nature documentary fan like we are, you’re probably already familiar with Ophiocordyeps, the species of fungus that turns ants into zombies, using mind control to coerce the ant to attach itself to a treetop, just before a mushroom bursts Alien-like out of its head. K+K looked into the research that’s been occurring over the last few years to determine just how the fungus pulls this off, and it turns out… not only is everything we thought we knew about this parasitic species wrong, its also way more disturbing that we could have previously guessed.

Don’t say we didn’t warn you.