Quantitative real-time PCR was performed on cDNA from unselected and PAM1.4 antibody-selected isolates EJ24 and EJ27 using a Rotorgene thermal cycler system (Corbett Research, Cambridge, UK) and a primer set specific for a highly conserved part of the var2csa DBL-4e domain, targeting all var2csa genes without bias (Salanti et al., 2003; Tuikue Ndam et al., 2005) . Selection-induced changes in var2csa transcription were quantified as described (Salanti et al., 2003) . The OptAIDS project: towards global halting of HIV/AIDS  We face a unique, transitory opportunity in the history of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, because we have collectively pooled money faster than the epidemic has grown [1] . Can we then seize the moment and halt this epidemic now? Most scenarios for the future of HIV/AIDS project modest reductions spread out over decades [2] . The very timescale of such projections, beyond the persistence time of all models, makes them unreliable [3] . Can we do better, quicker?