*By Marthe Fourcade * (Bloomberg) -- French startup Diaccurate and partners find how HIV causes patients’ CD4+ T-cells to malfunction, leading to immuno-deficiency, in an article published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

• Study highlights the role of enzyme called PLA2G1B in disabling of CD4+ T-cells, showing “how the virus cooperates with one of the patient’s enzymes to disable lymphocytes and help the virus neutralize the patient’s immune response,” says lead author and Diaccurate CEO Jacques Theze

• The effects on CD4 T-cell were shown to be blocked by Diaccurate’s experimental monoclonal antibody plazumab

• Study may pave the way for a new HIV treatment approach that may also be applicable to certain cancers

• Diaccurate is closely held spinoff from Pasteur Institute working on immunotherapies against HIV and cancer; created by France’s Truffle Capital.