Glossary

mucosal lining is the moist, inner lining of some organs and body cavities (such as the nose, mouth, vagina, lungs, and stomach). Glands in the mucosa make mucous, a thick, slippery fluid. A mucosal lining is also called a mucous membrane.

SIDA – the abbreviation for AIDS in French, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese.

codon – the word for the junction on genetic material (DNA or RNA) occupied by three nucleotides (or bases) to form an amino acid. In HIV it is most used when refering to drug resistance. There is an amino acid at each codon and the codons are numbered (starting from 1) for each section of the HIV gene. For example the mutation M184V in RT refers to a mutation change at codon 184 in the reverse transcriptase gene.

SC (sub-cutaneous) – under the skin. See IV (intravenous) and IM (intra-muscular).

cross-over study – where patients in a study ‘roll-over’ to a second related study. For example, this can be after a fixed period in a study (ie after 48 weeks) or after another event (for example, not having a treatment response).