The new strain is a "recombinant" virus - a cross of two viruses that meet in an infected person.

The two viruses, known as 02AG and A3, are the two most common strains in Guinea-Bissau, West Africa. The recombinant strain is called A3/02 and so far has only been seen in the region.

A single shot of antiretroviral drugs protected lab monkeys from the AIDS virus for weeks, according to two US trials released on Tuesday that open the way to tests on humans.

In separate work, two teams of virologists found that monkeys which received a monthly injection of a prototype drug were completely shielded from the simian equivalent of HIV.

The research builds on previous trials showing that people who take a small daily doses of antiretroviral drugs can slash their risk of being infected by an HIV-positive partner by more than 90 percent.

A new gene therapy approach that engineers a person's T-cells so that they become resistant to the human immunodeficiency virus has shown early signs of success, researchers said Wednesday.

Also called gene editing, the process acts like molecular scissors to snip off an entry portal for HIV so the virus cannot enter these key immune cells.

Once the cells lack the CCR5 protein, the immune system behaves much the way it does in a rare set of people -- about one percent of the population -- who are born with a genetic mutation that prevents them from getting HIV.

From a layman's perspective what happens with such research outcomes, over the years I've read about a few breakthroughs but none has yet to be commercialized.

Indeed. Studies on so-called PrEP been going on for a while now, initially comparing use of TDF alone vs. TDF+FTC combination. The latter was seen to be superior. Once further studies, now ongoing, are finalized and results released, NASCOP will then come up with national guidelines and avail drugs for the same. Many questions, obviously, are yet to be addressed.