Deborah Persaud

Biography

Persaud was born on 23 August 1960 in Guyana, South America. At age 16 she moved to Brooklyn. Dr. Persaud attended the New York University School of Medicine after receiving her undergraduate degree. She also earned a master's degree at the New York University School of Medicine. She started Residency at the Babies Hospital of New York, and finished her Chief Residency at the same hospital. Persaud later was a fellow at the New York University School of Medicine. She began her academic career as an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine from 1997 to 2004. In 2005, Persaud became an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Research Contributions

The main topic of Persaud’s research are AIDS and HIV of children. However, her research started from research about the HIV of adults. At 2003, she stated about the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)- type1 included in the subtypes of HIV. For the HIV patient, the HAART(Highly active antiretroviral therapy) is used as treatment. The HAART regimen includes some of drugs containing Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors(NRTIs) and protease inhibitor(PI), and non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors(NNRTI). The HAART has important function to suppress the levels of HIV-1 to below down. But, HIV-1 resists in cellular reservoirs of CD4+ continually with low-level viremia in adults, and this is very sensitive. From these facts, Persaud and her research team found viremia persists in children with plasma virus are remained at low level under the limit of detection of clinical assays. When children patient of HIV-1 are under the HARRT treatment, the viremia that is difficult to observing is continued virus production without resistance in the protease gene. So, her research team tried to find a novel culture assay that can stimulate the virus production during their latent, integrated HIV-1 in resting CD4+ T cells with the antiretroviral drugs. This drugs interfere the replication of unintegrated virus. They also demonstrated the facts that HIV-1 polymerase sequences from the resting CD4+ Tcells of the patients. By following these research, her research topic have been handling about the antiretroviral therapy. At 2009, her research team focused on the ongoing human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). From this research, it was figured out ongoing virus replication contributes to low-level viremia in patients on HAART, and this ongoing replication is subject to CD8+ T-cell selective pressure. After that, she suggested the induction therapy by using protease-inhibitors has influence the effect of NNRTI( non-Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors) resistance on virologic response to nevirapine-based HAART in children patients of HIV. For a long time, her research topic has been focusing on the therapy of HIV-1 especially with the children patient. In order to develop the therapy, she has been explained about the mechanism using the NNRTI of HAART.

Professional Activity

Dr. Persaud was nominated to the one of the world’s 100 most influential people for 2013 from Time magazine. The reason for this nomination is her research and clinical works in pediatric HIV and AIDS. Dr. Persaud noticed the first functional therapy of HIV in an infant patient. Dr. Persaud and her research team could accessed low-level of the virus that was undetectable. It could result in expanded cures for the HIV patients in the future, so her works and she are very worth to be selected for the influential people.

Research

In 2013 Persaud worked as part of a team who showed that a baby had been cured of HIV by giving it anti-HIV drugs; she won the Elizabeth Glaser Scientist Award and was featured in Time magazine's Top 100 most influential people in 2013 for her work. In 2014 Persaud's work contributed to a second baby being cured of HIV.