defeatHIV Martin Delaney Collaboratory

Our work at defeatHIV was galvanized by the case of Timothy Ray Brown, a Seattle native who became the first person in the world to be cured of HIV. The mechanism of cure in this case, transplantation with cells containing a mutated gene that confers natural resistance to HIV, emphasizes that cell and gene therapies represent perhaps the most promising approach to cure HIV. We are focused on understanding and developing Timothy’s cure into a therapy that can be offered to countless people worldwide.

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In this regard we are inspired by the revolutionary work of Dr. E. Donnall Thomas, a founding faculty member of Fred Hutch and ‘Father’ of the bone marrow transplant, which has brought life-saving therapy to cancer survivors around the globe.

Core strategies of our Collaboratory include creating cells that are resistant to HIV and can seek out and destroy HIV-infected cells, and boosting the immune system’s ability to control and eliminate HIV when it becomes active. To accomplish this, we are adapting carefully-honed techniques from immunotherapy and cutting-edge advances in gene editing — many pioneered here at Fred Hutch — and applying them to HIV cure.

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Resources:

• Fred Hutch HIV/AIDS Research

• Fred Hutch Cell & Gene Therapy Research

• Fred Hutch Immunotherapy

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defeatHIV is based at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, WA and is supported by a program at the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in honor of AIDS activist, Martin Delaney. This program, called the Martin Delaney Collaboratory: Towards an HIV-1 cure, focuses on providing support for curative HIV research strategies and fosters partnerships between public and private research organizations. Learn more below.