The Berlin Patient: Eradication of HIV with CCR5 Deficient Hematopoietic Stem Cells

Gero Hütter, MD
Production Manager, Institute of Transfusion Medicine and Immunology
Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
(Formerly of the Charité Hospital, Berlin, Germany)



VIDEOTop of page

Learning Objectives for The Berlin Patient: Eradication of HIV with CCR5 Deficient Hematopoietic Stem CellsTop of page

At the completion of this educational session, participants should be able to:
  • Understand the strategy of stem cell transplantation in HIV patients.
  • Know the importance of CCR5 for maintaining HIV infection.
  • Discuss the topics of functional and sterilizing cure.

About Gero Hütter (Gero Hütter):Top of page

Gero Hütter developed and performed the first allogeneic transplantation with natural CCR5 depleted stem cells in a leukemia patient with HIV-infection in 2004, during his residency in hematology, oncology and transfusion medicine at Charité Hospital in Berlin, Germany. Since then, Timothy Brown, now known as “the Berlin patient,” has not resumed antiretroviral therapy, nor has he had a relapse of HIV disease. In 2009 Dr Hütter became the head of the stem cell unit of the Institute of Transfusion Medicine and Immunology Mannheim of the Heidelberg University. There, he directs the research group of personalized stem therapy, which is supported by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates foundation.

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