The Delta 32 Mutation

Immunity Against Black Plague and HIV

The Black Plague is not the only virus that the Delta 32 mutation protects against. Having two copies of the mutation would make a person virtually immune to HIV, drawing on the same idea that HIV cannot latch on because the receptor is turned off - they cannot gain entry into cells and thereby infect those cells. Those with only one copy of this genetic mutation would be resistant, though not immune, to HIV and its effects. This mutation still exists today, but only in Euro-caucasian people. No Native Americans, Chinese, African, Indian, etc. people have EVER had this mutation. About 10% of Germans, 10% of Irish, etc - basically 10% of each ethnicity group still has this mutation.

Scientists continue to research the Delta 32 mutation in an effort to stop or cure infections such as AIDS. Now, you're probably thinking, why not just duplicate this mutation and give it to everyone? That's not in the realm of possibility, at least not yet. You see, gene alteration (or even removing a gene) is extremely complex, experimental and very precise and we do not understand our own genetic code well enough to start playing with our genetic makeup. Think of what the effects could be if you added a gene in there (which would be extremely difficult to begin with). Any number of things could go wrong. Same goes for removing a gene, or breaking one. The Human Genome project is almost finished (after many years of being worked on), but that just tells us our 'architecture'. There is so much more to be learned about human genetics before we can even think about altering our genes.