Glossary
(Definitions adapted from aidinfo 2011 & Online medicine dictionary n.d.)
Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS): The final fatal stage of HIV infection. When a HIV-infected person is diagnosed with one or more opportunistic infections or has T cells less than 200 cells per cubic millimetre of blood, he or she is said to have AIDS.
Acute infection: Early stage of rapid HIV replication that occurs 2 to 4 weeks after HIV infection.
Antiretroviral Therapy (ART): The treatment for HIV infection which involves using a combination of three or more antiretroviral (ARV) drugs to prevent HIV from replicating.
B cells: A type of white blood cell originated from the bone marrow. B cells are responsible for secreting antibody.
Candidiasis: An infection caused by a species of the yeast Candida, usually Candida albicans. This is a common cause of vaginal infections in women.
Cryptococcal meningitis: An infection caused by the fungus Cryptococcus neoformans, which infects the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. Symptoms include fever, malaise, and headache.
Cryptosporidiosis: An infection caused by the protozoan Cryptosporidium. Symptoms include diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and lower abdominal cramping.
Cytomegalovirus (CMV): A herpes virus that can cause infection in many parts of the body. CMV infection that affects a body part other than the liver, spleen, or lymph nodes is an AIDS-defining condition in people with HIV.
Helper T cells: They help coordinate the immune response by stimulating other immune cells, such as macrophages, B lymphocytes (B cells), and CD8 T lymphocytes (CD8 cells), to fight infection.
HIV-1: One strain of HIV that is responsible for the worldwide pandemic of HIV/AIDS.
HIV-2: Another strain of HIV that is less easily to be transmitted than HIV-1, only affecting West Africa.
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV): A deadly virus that causes AIDS, which is the most advanced stage of HIV infection by weakening the immune system. HIV is a retrovirus that occurs as two strains: HIV-1 and HIV-2.
Immune system: A network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to protect the host against the bacterial, parasitic, fungal, viral infections and from the growth of tumor cells.
Opportunistic infections (OIs): Infections that take advantages of the weakened immune system and they are mainly responsible for the death of the AIDS patients.
Retrovirus: A type of virus that uses RNA as its genetic material.
Salmonellosis: An infection caused by the bacteria Salmonella. Symptoms include gastroenteritis and fever, and caused especially by eating improperly stored or undercooked foods.
T cells: A type of white blood cell originated from the thymus gland and regulates the immune system's response to diseased or malignant cells.
Toxoplasmosis: An infection caused by the parasite Toxoplasma gondii. It is most commonly transmitted by contact with infected cat feces, eating contaminated meat, or drinking contaminated water.
Tuberculosis (TB): An infection caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis. TB usually affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body, such as the kidneys, spine, and brain.
CD4 receptor: A specific molecule present on the surface of aCD4 cell.
Clinical Latency: Stage of HIV infection during which there are no symptoms of HIV infection.
Gay-related immune deficiency: The term for AIDS in the 1980s, when it was considered to affect only homosexual males.
Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART): A treatment regimen that aggressively suppress HIV replication and progression of HIV disease. It involves combining three or more anti-HIV drugs from at least two different classes.
Integrase: An enzyme involved in the integration of some viruses into host cell chromosomal DNA.
Kaposi sarcoma: A rare type of cancer characterized by the abnormal growth of cells that line lymph and blood vessels. Kaposi sarcoma (KS) causes red or purple patches of tissue (lesions) to grow under the skin and in the lining of the mouth, nose, and throat.
Lentivirus: A genus of retroviruses that cause persistent infection that typically results in chronic, progressive, usually fatal disease.
Macrophage: A type of white blood cell that fights infection by ingesting foreign substances, such as microorganisms and dead cells.
p24: An HIV protein which forms HIV’s viral core.
Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP): A treatment that is started as soon as possible after high-risk exposure to an infectious agent (such as HIV, hepatitis B virus (HBV), or hepatitis C virus (HCV)).
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP): Administration of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs before potential HIV exposure in order to reduce the risk of HIV infection.
Protease: An enzyme that breaks down proteins into smaller proteins or smaller protein units, such as peptides or amino acids.
Reverse transcriptase: A polymerase that catalyzes the formation of DNA on an RNA template, found in oncogenic viruses containing RNA, especially the retroviruses.
Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV): An HIV-like virus that can infect monkeys and apes and can cause a disease similar to AIDS. SIV cannot infect humans, and HIV cannot infect monkeys.
Viral core: The center of HIV which contains the genetic information and three enzymes needed for HIV to replicate.
Viral envelope: The outer coat of HIV, made up of two layers of lipids (fatty molecules).
Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS): The final fatal stage of HIV infection. When a HIV-infected person is diagnosed with one or more opportunistic infections or has T cells less than 200 cells per cubic millimetre of blood, he or she is said to have AIDS.
Acute infection: Early stage of rapid HIV replication that occurs 2 to 4 weeks after HIV infection.
Antiretroviral Therapy (ART): The treatment for HIV infection which involves using a combination of three or more antiretroviral (ARV) drugs to prevent HIV from replicating.
B cells: A type of white blood cell originated from the bone marrow. B cells are responsible for secreting antibody.
Candidiasis: An infection caused by a species of the yeast Candida, usually Candida albicans. This is a common cause of vaginal infections in women.
Cryptococcal meningitis: An infection caused by the fungus Cryptococcus neoformans, which infects the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. Symptoms include fever, malaise, and headache.
Cryptosporidiosis: An infection caused by the protozoan Cryptosporidium. Symptoms include diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and lower abdominal cramping.
Cytomegalovirus (CMV): A herpes virus that can cause infection in many parts of the body. CMV infection that affects a body part other than the liver, spleen, or lymph nodes is an AIDS-defining condition in people with HIV.
Helper T cells: They help coordinate the immune response by stimulating other immune cells, such as macrophages, B lymphocytes (B cells), and CD8 T lymphocytes (CD8 cells), to fight infection.
HIV-1: One strain of HIV that is responsible for the worldwide pandemic of HIV/AIDS.
HIV-2: Another strain of HIV that is less easily to be transmitted than HIV-1, only affecting West Africa.
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV): A deadly virus that causes AIDS, which is the most advanced stage of HIV infection by weakening the immune system. HIV is a retrovirus that occurs as two strains: HIV-1 and HIV-2.
Immune system: A network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to protect the host against the bacterial, parasitic, fungal, viral infections and from the growth of tumor cells.
Opportunistic infections (OIs): Infections that take advantages of the weakened immune system and they are mainly responsible for the death of the AIDS patients.
Retrovirus: A type of virus that uses RNA as its genetic material.
Salmonellosis: An infection caused by the bacteria Salmonella. Symptoms include gastroenteritis and fever, and caused especially by eating improperly stored or undercooked foods.
T cells: A type of white blood cell originated from the thymus gland and regulates the immune system's response to diseased or malignant cells.
Toxoplasmosis: An infection caused by the parasite Toxoplasma gondii. It is most commonly transmitted by contact with infected cat feces, eating contaminated meat, or drinking contaminated water.
Tuberculosis (TB): An infection caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis. TB usually affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body, such as the kidneys, spine, and brain.
CD4 receptor: A specific molecule present on the surface of aCD4 cell.
Clinical Latency: Stage of HIV infection during which there are no symptoms of HIV infection.
Gay-related immune deficiency: The term for AIDS in the 1980s, when it was considered to affect only homosexual males.
Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART): A treatment regimen that aggressively suppress HIV replication and progression of HIV disease. It involves combining three or more anti-HIV drugs from at least two different classes.
Integrase: An enzyme involved in the integration of some viruses into host cell chromosomal DNA.
Kaposi sarcoma: A rare type of cancer characterized by the abnormal growth of cells that line lymph and blood vessels. Kaposi sarcoma (KS) causes red or purple patches of tissue (lesions) to grow under the skin and in the lining of the mouth, nose, and throat.
Lentivirus: A genus of retroviruses that cause persistent infection that typically results in chronic, progressive, usually fatal disease.
Macrophage: A type of white blood cell that fights infection by ingesting foreign substances, such as microorganisms and dead cells.
p24: An HIV protein which forms HIV’s viral core.
Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP): A treatment that is started as soon as possible after high-risk exposure to an infectious agent (such as HIV, hepatitis B virus (HBV), or hepatitis C virus (HCV)).
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP): Administration of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs before potential HIV exposure in order to reduce the risk of HIV infection.
Protease: An enzyme that breaks down proteins into smaller proteins or smaller protein units, such as peptides or amino acids.
Reverse transcriptase: A polymerase that catalyzes the formation of DNA on an RNA template, found in oncogenic viruses containing RNA, especially the retroviruses.
Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV): An HIV-like virus that can infect monkeys and apes and can cause a disease similar to AIDS. SIV cannot infect humans, and HIV cannot infect monkeys.
Viral core: The center of HIV which contains the genetic information and three enzymes needed for HIV to replicate.
Viral envelope: The outer coat of HIV, made up of two layers of lipids (fatty molecules).