The first cases of AIDS were described on June 5, 1981, here at UCLA. I started at UCLA in the same year, and have observed during the ensuing years remarkable success but also notable failures in our war against this virus. We have deciphered the complete genetic structure of HIV-1 and all of the proteins encoded by the HIV-1 genome. The world has two drugs, one effective and one less effective, with which to fight the virus: protease inhibitors and reverse transcriptase inhibitors, respectively.

Yet looking back, the development of these drugs can largely be attributed to the understanding of retroviruses and their replicative machinery developed prior to 1981. As yet, no drugs has been developed solely on the basis of our enhanced understanding of HIV-1 genetic structure and specific functions.

The development of an effective vaccine is the only long-term solution to the worldwide AIDS epidemic. The problem is that we understand far less bout the intricate relationship between HIV-1 and our immune defense system than we do about the genetic structure of HIV-1 itself. We do not understand why HIV-1 is so successful at evading our natural immune defenses. Over the next decade we must develop new drugs, less expensive drugs, and a vaccine.