GURU NANAK PUBLIC

SCHOOL

SESSION: 2024-25
BIOLOGY PROJECT
TOPIC- Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
(AIDS)

SUBMITTED TO: Submitted By:

MR SUBRAT PRADHAN JUGAL KISHOR SAHU
DEPT. OF BIOLOGY CLASS: XII SCIENCE A
ROLL NO: -
 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that this piece of work titled INVESTIGATING ON THE TOPIC
"Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome" (AIDS) is being submitted by Jugal
Kishor Sahu for the partial fulfilment of +2 Science of C.B.S.E under my
supervision and guidance in Guru Nanak Public School, Sambalpur during the
2024-25.

Signature of Internal Signature of Principal Signature of External

 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The completion of this project is mainly due to the
valuable guidance rendered by my supervisor Mr.
Subrat Pradhan.
I therefore express my deep sense of gratitude to him. I
would like to extent my sincere thanks for his constant
encouragement throughout this project work. I could
have never been able to accomplish this project without
his kind support and cooperation.
Lastly, I am also thankful to our principal sir and school
management for their kind support and help from time to
time to complete this project work.

JUGAL KISHOR SAHU

CLASS: XII SCIENCE A
 DECLARATION
I, Jugal Kishor Sahu, a student of Class XII Science A at
Guru Nanak Public School, hereby declare that the project
titled ' Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)'
submitted to CBSE is my original work and has not been
copied or plagiarized from any source. I have
acknowledged all sources used in the project.

Date:
Name: Jugal Kishor Sahu
Class: XII Science A
Roll Number:
 CONTENTS
1.AIDS – Introduction
2.Causes of AIDS
3.Symptoms of HIV- AIDS
4.Diagnosis of AIDS
5.Treatment of AIDS
6.Myths and facts about AIDS
7.HIV prevention
8.Conclusion
INTRODUCTION
AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome) is a chronic and life-
threatening condition caused by the human immunodeficiency
virus (HIV). AIDS is a condition that occurs when HIV infects and
damages the body's immune system, making it difficult to fight
off infections and diseases.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus that attacks the

body’s immune system. Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome
(AIDS) occurs at the most advanced stage of infection. HIV targets
the body’s white blood cells, weakening the immune system. This
makes it easier to get sick with diseases like tuberculosis,
infections and some cancers. People with AIDS have very low
counts of certain white blood cells and severely damaged immune
systems. They may have additional illnesses that indicate that
they have progressed to AIDS.

Without treatment, HIV infections progress to AIDS in about 10

years.

HIV is spread from the body fluids of an infected person, including

blood, breast milk, semen and vaginal fluids. It is not spread by
kisses, hugs or sharing food. It can also spread from a
mother to her baby.

HIV initially makes you feel sick with flu-like symptoms. Then it
can hide in your body for a long time without causing noticeable
symptoms. During that time, it slowly destroys your T-cells. When
your T-cells get very low or you begin to get certain illnesses that
people with healthy immune systems don’t get, HIV has
progressed to AIDS.

AIDS can cause rapid weight loss, extreme tiredness, mouth or

genital ulcers, fevers, night sweats and skin discolorations. Other
illnesses and cancers often happen in people living with AIDS and
can cause additional symptoms.

CAUSES
AIDS is caused by HIV. HIV is not passed on easily from one
person to another. The virus does not spread through the air like
cold and flu viruses.

HIV lives in the blood and in some body fluids. To get HIV, one of
these fluids from someone with HIV has to get into your blood.

The body fluids that contain enough HIV to infect someone are:

 semen
 vaginal fluids, including menstrual blood
 breast milk
 blood
 lining inside the anus

Other body fluids, like saliva, sweat or urine, do not contain

enough of the virus to infect another person.

The main ways the virus enters the bloodstream are:

 by injecting into the bloodstream with needles or injecting

equipment that's been shared with other people
 through the thin lining on or inside the anus, vagina and
genitals
 through the thin lining of the mouth and eyes
  through cuts and sores in the skin

SYMPTOMS
You can have HIV without having any symptoms. This is why it’s
important to get tested even if you don’t feel sick.

Sometimes you’ll have flu-like symptoms when you first get

infected with HIV. These can include:

 Fever.
 Chills.
 Fatigue.
 Sore throat.
 Muscle aches.
 Night sweats.
 Rash.
 Swollen lymph nodes.
 Mouth sores.

HIV has three stages:

Stage 1: Acute HIV

Some people get flu-like symptoms a month or two after they’ve

been infected with HIV. These symptoms often go away within a
week to a month.

Stage 2: Chronic stage/clinical latency

After the acute stage, you can have HIV for many years without
feeling sick. It's important to know that you can still spread HIV to
others even if you feel well.

Stage 3: AIDS
AIDS is the most serious stage of HIV infection. In this stage, HIV
has severely weakened your immune system and opportunistic
infections are much more likely to make you sick.

Opportunistic infections are ones that someone with a healthy

immune system could typically fight off. When HIV has advanced
to AIDS, these illnesses take advantage of your weakened
immune system.

You’re more likely to get certain cancers when you have AIDS.
These cancers and opportunistic infections together are called
AIDS-defining illnesses.

To be diagnosed with AIDS, you must be infected with HIV and

have at least one of the following:

 Fewer than 200 CD4 cells per cubic millimeter of blood (200
cells/mm3).
 An AIDS-defining illness.

DIAGNOSIS
HIV can be diagnosed through rapid diagnostic tests that provide
same-day results. This greatly facilitates early diagnosis and
linkage with treatment and prevention. People can also use HIV
self-tests to test themselves. However, no single test can provide
a full HIV positive diagnosis; confirmatory testing is required,
conducted by a qualified and trained health worker or community
worker. HIV infection can be detected with great accuracy using
WHO prequalified tests within a nationally approved testing
strategy and algorithm.

Most widely used HIV diagnostic tests detect antibodies produced

by a person as part of their immune response to fight HIV. In most
cases, people develop antibodies to HIV within 28 days of
infection. During this time, people are in the so-called “window
period” when they have low levels of antibodies which cannot be
detected by many rapid tests, but they may still transmit HIV to
others. People who have had a recent high-risk exposure and test
negative can have a further test after 28 days.

Following a positive diagnosis, people should be retested before

they are enrolled in treatment and care to rule out any potential
testing or reporting error. While testing for adolescents and adults
has been made simple and efficient, this is not the case for babies
born to HIV-positive mothers. For children less than 18 months of
age, rapid antibody testing is not sufficient to identify HIV
infection – virological testing must be provided as early as birth or
at 6 weeks of age. New technologies are now available to perform
this test at the point of care and enable same-day results, which
will accelerate appropriate linkage with treatment and care.

TREATMENT
There is no cure for HIV infection. It is treated with antiretroviral
drugs, which stop the virus from replicating in the body. Current
antiretroviral therapy (ART) does not cure HIV infection but allows
a person’s immune system to get stronger. This helps them to
fight other infections.

Currently, ART must be taken every day for the rest of a person’s
life.

ART lowers the amount of the virus in a person’s body. This stops
symptoms and allows people to live full and healthy lives. People
living with HIV who are taking ART and who have no evidence of
virus in the blood will not spread the virus to their sexual
partners.

Pregnant women with HIV should have access to, and take, ART
as soon as possible. This protects the health of the mother and
will help prevent HIV transmission to the fetus before birth, or
through breast milk.
Advanced HIV disease remains a persistent problem in the HIV
response. WHO is supporting countries to implement the
advanced HIV disease package of care to reduce illness and
death. Newer HIV medicines and short course treatments for
opportunistic infections like cryptococcal meningitis are being
developed that may change the way people take ART and
prevention medicines, including access to injectable
formulations, in the future.

MYTHS ANF FACTS ABOUT HIV-AIDS

Many misconceptions circulate about HIV that contribute to the
harmful stigma of the virus.

The following activities or behaviours cannot transmit HIV:

 shaking hands
 hugging
 kissing
 sneezing
 touching unbroken skin
 sharing a toilet
 sharing towels
 sharing cutlery
 mouth-to-mouth resuscitation
 touching the saliva, tears, feces, or urine of a person with
HIV

PREVENTION
HIV is a preventable disease. Reduce the risk of HIV infection by:

 using a male or female condom during sex

 being tested for HIV and sexually transmitted infections
 having a voluntary medical male circumcision
  using harm reduction services for people who inject and use
drugs.

Doctors may suggest medicines and medical devices to help

prevent HIV infection, including:

 antiretroviral drugs (ARVs), including oral Pre-Exposure

Prophylaxis (PrEP) and long-acting products
 dapivirine vaginal rings
 injectable long acting cabotegravir.

ARVs can also be used to prevent mothers from passing HIV to

their children. People taking antiretroviral therapy (ART) and who
have no evidence of virus in the blood will not pass HIV to their
sexual partners. Access to testing and ART is an important part of
preventing HIV.

Antiretroviral drugs given to people without HIV can prevent

infection

When given before possible exposures to HIV it is called pre-

exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and when given after an exposure it
is called post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP). People can use PrEP or
PEP when the risk of contracting HIV is high; people should seek
advice from a clinician when thinking about using PrEP or PEP.

CONCLUSION
AIDS remains a global health crisis, claiming millions of lives.
Despite progress in treatment and prevention, challenges persist.
Stigma, discrimination, and limited access to healthcare hinder
efforts. Continued research and innovation are crucial. Education
and awareness are key to preventing transmission. Access to
antiretroviral therapy (ART) has improved survival rates.
Collective action, funding, and community-based initiatives are
necessary. We must prioritize HIV/AIDS research, treatment, and
prevention. By working together, we can control AIDS and
improve lives. A future without AIDS is achievable, but requires
unwavering commitment and collective action.