New HIV research raises hope for potential cure strategy

THOUSAND PALMS, CALIF. (KESQ)- A new study led by researchers at Oregon Health & Science University⁠ is raising hope that scientists could be getting closer to a new way of eliminating HIV.

The research was led by Dr. Jonah Sacha and Dr. Nancy Haigwood of OHSU, with collaborators working at the Oregon and California National Primate Research Centers. The research was published August 10, 2026, in Nature Microbiology.

Researchers studied infant rhesus macaques infected with an HIV-like virus. They began treatment 72 hours after infection.

The researchers combined three approaches: standard antiretroviral therapy, broadly neutralizing antibodies, and an experimental antibody called leronlimab, which blocks the CCR5 receptor HIV commonly uses to enter immune cells.

The overall research involved 55 infant macaques receiving different treatment combinations. But the biggest result came from the eight animals that received the full three-part treatment. After treatment was stopped, researchers continued monitoring them and found no evidence of replicating or latent virus about a year later.

That’s important because current HIV medication can suppress the virus, but HIV can remain hidden in cells and typically rebound if treatment is discontinued. Researchers hope the combination may have prevented that hidden reservoir from becoming established. However, this is not yet a cure for HIV in humans. The research was done in nonhuman primates, and the approach still needs to be studied in human clinical trials

See my full story tonight at 6 on News Channel 3 to learn more about the research- and what it could mean for the future of HIV treatment and our community.