US researchers at the University of Michigan have found that a carbohydrate-binding protein naturally occurring in bananas may hold the key to beating the HIV/Aids virus in the future.

The Press Association reports that the study’s lead author, graduate student Michael Swanson, and colleagues found that an ingredient in bananas called BanLec was as efficacious as two existing anti-HIV drugs.

BanLec belongs to a group of proteins known as lectins – carbohydrate-binding proteins ‘of non-immune origin’ that Swanson says are anti-viral agents able to fight viral infections.

BanLec works by preventing the HIV virus from entering the body and taking hold, as it acts on the "envelope" that encloses the virus’ genetic material. BanLec is a lectin specifically found in bananas, says Swanson – and the researchers aim to develop ‘a BanLec-based topical microbicide that can inhibit HIV-1 transmission’.

Swanson and his team believe that drugs based on BanLec could potentially save millions of lives.

‘The problem with some HIV drugs is that the virus can mutate and become resistant, but that's much harder to do in the presence of lectins,’ he said.

‘Lectins can bind to the sugars found on different spots of the HIV-1 envelope, and presumably it will take multiple mutations for the virus to get around them.’

The findings of the research are published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

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