Science has compiled a list of the 10 most significant scientific discoveries of 2011

Experts from Science magazine compiled a list of the 10 most significant scientific discoveries of 2011. But the “breakthrough of the year” from this list was the discovery that antiretroviral drugs prevent the transmission of HIV.

Clinical trials have fully proven that antiretroviral drugs not only help AIDS patients, but also inhibit the spread of the virus. Almost 1,800 heterosexual couples from 9 countries participated in the trials. Couples were specifically selected where only one partner was HIV-infected. Initially, the trials were planned to last until 2015.

"The researchers then had to compare couples taking antiretroviral drugs with those not taking them. But this year's study showed that the drugs clearly prevented HIV infection. The researchers then decided, for ethical reasons, to give all participants access to antiretroviral drugs," the paper says. Of the 28 people who became infected with HIV during the trial, only one belonged to the group where one of the sexual partners took antiretroviral drugs. In this group, serious health problems related to HIV were 41% less severe than in the control group.

The discovery is that taking antiretroviral drugs early in the disease (earlier than they are usually prescribed) can reduce the likelihood of acquiring HIV in heterosexual relationships by 96%. The research was led by Myron Cohen of the University of North Carolina at Chappel Hill.

Here are other discoveries and advances highlighted by Science experts:

1. The Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa delivered asteroid soil samples to Earth for the first time.
2. Comparison of DNA between modern and ancient people revealed that many people carry traces of ancient DNA in their genomes, including the genes of "Denisova man".
3. An aging "retarder" has been invented: if aged cells are removed from the body of mice, the symptoms of aging appear later. Although the lifespan of the mice is not extended, they do not develop age-related diseases such as cataracts or muscle dystrophy.
4. The structure of the protein responsible for photosynthesis in plants has been studied (“this is the path to sources of environmentally friendly energy,” the publication explains).
5. Astronomers have discovered unusual planetary systems that are completely different from ours, for example, a planet with two suns.
6. The Keck telescope in Hawaii has discovered two clouds of hydrogen in space, the chemical composition of which apparently has not changed 2 billion years after the Big Bang.
7. Chemists have synthesized several new zeolites - porous minerals that are used as catalysts.
8. The first clinical trials of a malaria vaccine, involving more than 15,000 children, have given hope that a malaria vaccine is possible.
9. A study of bacteria living in the human gastrointestinal tract has shown a link between diet and the nature of the intestinal microflora.

[ 1 ], [ 2 ], [ 3 ]