3TC is an antiretroviral treatment used to prevent HIV infection from becoming AIDS. After treatment with 3TC, the HIV population in a patient consists entirely of 3TC-resident virus particles. What bets explains this phenomenon?
A. HIV can change its surface proteins through mutations and resist vaccines
B. The patient became re-infected with 3TC-resistant viruses after the initial exposure
C. The drug caused RNA changes to occur, creating a resistance to the once applicable drug
D. A few drug-resistant viruses were present at the start of the treatment and selective pressures increased their frequency
I think it’s A
D
Explanation:
3TC is an antiretroviral treatment used to prevent HIV infection from becoming AIDS. After treatment with 3TC, the HIV population in a patient consists entirely of 3TC-resistant virus particles. What best explain this phenomenon?
To determine the correct answer, let's analyze each option and see which one best explains the phenomenon:
A. HIV can change its surface proteins through mutations and resist vaccines.
This option suggests that HIV can mutate and modify its surface proteins, making it resistant to vaccines. While this is true, it does not directly explain why the HIV population in a patient consists entirely of 3TC-resident virus particles.
B. The patient became re-infected with 3TC-resistant viruses after the initial exposure.
This option suggests that the patient was infected again with a different strain of HIV that is already resistant to 3TC. However, the scenario provided does not mention that the patient was re-infected, so this option is not the most suitable for explaining the phenomenon described.
C. The drug caused RNA changes to occur, creating a resistance to the once applicable drug.
This option suggests that the drug, 3TC, caused specific RNA changes in the virus, leading to resistance against the drug. While drugs like 3TC can induce changes in the RNA of the virus, this option does not mention how the virus population ended up comprising entirely of 3TC-resident particles, so it might not be the correct answer.
D. A few drug-resistant viruses were present at the start of the treatment, and selective pressures increased their frequency.
This option proposes that there were initially some drug-resistant viruses present in the patient before the treatment began. As the patient was treated with 3TC, the selective pressure increased, favoring the growth and replication of these drug-resistant viruses. This option aligns well with the phenomenon described in the question, as it explains how the virus population became entirely composed of 3TC-resident particles.
Considering the above analysis, option D seems to be the most appropriate answer, as it best explains why the HIV population in a patient consists entirely of 3TC-resident virus particles.