AIDS Weekly articles from May 2001

AIDS Weekly archives from May 2001

Zidovudine Derivative Much More Potent Than Parent Compound.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, staff medical writer - Researchers in France say that a derivative of the antiretroviral HIV drug zidovudine, better known as AZT, is many times more powerful than the original....

Many Heterosexuals Are Unaware Of HIV Risk Factors And Their Partner's HIV Status.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Many adults are unaware of their partner's HIV status and HIV risks, suggest the results of a study of heterosexuals with AIDS. "High-risk heterosexual adults may not perceive themselves to be...

African Leaders Okay Plan To Import And Produce Generic HIV Drugs.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- African ministers agreed on a draft declaration on April 25, 2001, calling on their countries to import and produce their own generic AIDS drugs and to boost spending dramatically on AIDS programs...

Antiretrovirals Can Raise Pediatric CD4 Count Despite Poor Viral Response.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, staff medical writer - Children who achieve only temporary HIV suppression under antiretroviral therapy can still realize sustained immune recovery, study findings indicate. ...

Effective Dose Range For Once-Daily Protease Inhibitor Determined.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, staff medical writer - Further study of the Bristol-Myers Squibb's once-daily anti-HIV compound BMS-232632 has determined effective concentrations of the drug designed to ease...

Vaginal Infection Treatments Reduce Viral Load.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, staff medical writer - Successful resolution of vaginal infections may significantly reduce the risk of sexual HIV transmission by reducing viral "shedding," according to a...

Combination Therapy May Be Effective Prevention, But Adverse Effects Also Occur.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Combination therapy with the anti-AIDS drugs zidovudine and lamivudine may be effective in preventing transmission of HIV from mothers to babies, but severe adverse effects and the emergence of...

Cell Fusion Inhibitors Have Synergistic Effect.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, staff medical writer - Two experimental drugs that inhibit different events in the process of HIV cell entry become much more potent when used in combination, study results show....

Drug Companies Drop Lawsuit Against Generics In South Africa.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Pharmaceutical giants dropped a lawsuit on April 19, 2001, against a South African law that could provide cheaper AIDS drugs to millions of Africans, ending an international battle that deeply...

New Blood Purifying Device Reduces HIV Significantly In Preclinical Trials.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Aethlon Medical, Inc. (AEMD) is developing a promising new technology for treating HIV. The HIV-HemopurifierT is a modified dialysis cartridge that has demonstrated the ability to rapidly...

Once-Daily Dosing Holds Concentrations But With Side Effects.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Roche announced April 18, 2001, preliminary clinical data from four ongoing studies examining tolerability and antiviral activity with once-daily dosing of its protease inhibitor Fortovase(R)...

Total Cost of Antiretroviral Therapy Declining.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, staff medical writer - Despite rising drug costs, the total expense incurred by HIV patients has dropped significantly since the introduction of potent antiretroviral medicines....

Depression Can Hasten HIV Progression In Women.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, staff medical writer - HIV infected women who suffer from depression have more complications and lower survival rates than other infected women, epidemiologists at Yale University...

Decoy Molecule That Fights Food Poisoning Might Help Defeat Other Toxins.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scientists at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico report that they have designed decoy molecules that, in laboratory studies, can stop the spread of staphylococcal superantigen, a toxin...

Proteomics Database May Help Identify New Anti-HIV Compounds.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Hybrigenics, Paris, France, announced the launch of what it calls "the world's most comprehensive combined protein-protein interactions 'map' between the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and its...

Rural Drug Users In England Acquire Same Diseases As Urban Counterparts.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, staff medical writer - Drug users in rural England acquire blood-borne viral infections at the same rates as their urban contemporaries do. Medical investigators at two...

Study Of HIV In Rural America Paints Picture Of Suicide, Isolation.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A four-year study of people with HIV and AIDS who live in rural America is painting a picture of isolation, depression, and thoughts of suicide. Early findings from the project reveal that most...

Studies Cast Further Doubt On Precursor Virus To HIV Being Contained In Polio Vaccine.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- New studies have cast more doubt on the idea that AIDS arose because an oral polio vaccine was contaminated with a precursor to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). For years, there has been...

Fibroblast Growth Factor Has Protective Effects.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, staff medical writer - Researchers at the University of California have shown that fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1) can protect the central nervous system from HIV related damage....

Extensive Gp120-Induced Macrophage Surface CD4 Loss Observed.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, staff medical writer - The HIV envelope protein gp120 can cause a rapid and substantial loss of macrophage surface CD4 using a CCR5-dependent mechanism, pathologists report. ...

Phase I Clinical Trial Of Plasmid DNA-Based Vaccine Is Enrolling Patients.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A Phase I, placebo-controlled study to examine the safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of an experimental HIV vaccine consisting of plasmid DNA. The manufacturer of the experimental...

Africa Requires Massive Funding To Help Stem Health Crisis, Experts Tell UN Panel.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Addressing an expert panel at United Nations Headquarters in New York, a Harvard University professor made an impassioned appeal on April 17, 2001, for massive assistance to help Africa stem its...

NewsRx.net Is Preferred Site for Cancer, Malaria, AIDS, Other Health Searches, Audience Measurement Shows.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- NewsRx Network, Atlanta, Georgia, the leading provider of life science databases and daily and weekly health news, announced on April 17, 2001, the results of audience measurements based on its...

New U.S. Law To Reinforce Needle Safety.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Health care workers who handle needles will have more say about the safety of the devices they use under a new federal law that was to take effect during April 2001. Employers also will be...

Few Infections Result From Needle Reuse At U.S. Phlebotomy Center.
May 7, 2001... 2001 MAY 7 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, staff medical writer - Few people who were potentially exposed to bloodborne viruses at a California clinical laboratory have developed viral infections, public health officials...

Overweight May Slow Onset Of Full-Blown AIDS.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Gaining a few extra pounds may help prevent the progression of HIV to full-blown AIDS, although the reasons are still unclear. J. Shuter and...

Mutant HIV Strains Retain Fitness Despite Reduced Function.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Drug-resistant HIV strains remain dangerous even when mutations seem to degrade their ability to proliferate, researchers in Switzerland warn. ...

Antiretroviral Therapy Improves Anemia.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) improves anemia in HIV patients, although the exact mechanisms of this benefit are not clear, Johns Hopkins...

AIDSVAX Shows Continuing Safety Profile.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The independent organization that is overseeing the final-stage clinical trials VaxGen, Inc.'s preventive AIDSVAX vaccine indicated, once again, that the product appears safe and that the trials...

NCI Funds HIV Fusion Inhibitors Study.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Panacos Pharmaceuticals, Inc., announced April 11, 2001, that it has signed a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. National Cancer Institute (NCI) to discover drug...

Resistance Testing Cost Effective After Antiretroviral Failure.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Screening for HIV drug resistance is a cost-effective way to maximize the benefit of treatment after the initial failure of antiretroviral therapy,...

Twice-Daily Indinavir/Ritonavir Regimens Effective.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - An antiretroviral regimen consisting of twice-daily doses of indinavir and ritonavir is safe and effective, researchers in The Netherlands report. ...

Immunotherapy Agent Found Effective In 73% Of Patients.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Stressgen Biotechnologies Corp. (TSE:SSB) announced April 24, 2001, preliminary Phase II data confirming previously reported activity of HspE7, a novel immunotherapeutic, for the treatment of a...

High HIV Viremia Does Not Increase Cancer Risk.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - High levels of plasma HIV RNA do not necessarily predispose patients to cervical cancer although high viral loads are linked to factors that do increase...

Blood Transfusions Do Not Pose Viral Activation Risk.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Contrary to conventional wisdom, blood transfusions do not seem to have a negative effect on HIV patients, according to researchers at the University of...

CD8 Cells Can Be Productively Infected.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in the United States have shown for the first time that CD8(+) cells from patients with full-blown AIDS can be productively infected with HIV....

Blood Assay Can Be Modified To Test Saliva.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in the United States have successfully modified an HIV blood test for use with saliva, increasing its feasibility for use in developing...

STD Care Lacking In South African Private Health Sector.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Treatment for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in the private South African health sector is of poor quality and often unavailable, hampering efforts...

Drug Resistance Patterns Remain Stable Among Canadian-Born Patients.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by N.R. Saltmarsh, staff medical writer - Despite changing trends in tuberculosis care, and a simultaneous shift in immigration patterns, drug resistance rates among Canadian-born patients have...

Grant Awarded To Develop Diagnostic Device.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Sequella, Inc., announced on April 23, 2001, that it received a Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) Grant from the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) that will...

Phenothiazines Enhance Potency Of Antibiotic Therapy.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by N.R. Saltmarsh, staff medical writer - Phenothiazine drugs enhance the potency of antibiotics against multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis, according to a new report. The phenothiazines were...

Value Of LCx Assay In Diagnosing Extrapulmonary TB Is Questionable.
May 14, 2001... 2001 MAY 14 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by N.R. Saltmarsh, staff medical writer - The positive predictive value of the LCx Mycobacterium tuberculosis assay for extrapulmonary tuberculosis is less than 50%, compared to culture, say...

Sequences Inhibiting Surface Env Expression Found.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in Germany have discovered a pair of motifs in HIV's cytoplasmic tail that suppress surface expression of the Env protein. "Only a small...

HIV Epitopes Found In Persistently Seronegative Sex Workers Could Aid Vaccine Development.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- An ideal AIDS vaccine might be one that stimulates the cellular immune system so efficiently that, despite repeated exposure to HIV, an individual never shows signs of viremia or even seroconverts...

Betulinic Acid Derivative Can Prevent Viral Maturation.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - The betulinic acid derivative YK-FH312 seems to inhibit HIV viral packaging and/or release a novel plan of attack for HIV drugs, researchers in Japan say....

Ritonavir Doesn't Help Saquinavir Penetrate Sanctuary Sites.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Combining ritonavir with saquinavir does not give the HIV drugs access to areas blocked by P-glycoprotein (P-gp), researchers in the Netherlands say. ...

Zidovudine-Based Contraceptive Appears Safe In Murine Model.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - The zidovudine-derived spermicide WHI-07 is safe for vaginal application, researchers writing in the journal Toxicological Sciences report. O.J....

Syringe Prescription May Help Prevent Infection.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A study published in the May 2001 issue of the American Journal of Public Health and funded by the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) shows that physician syringe prescription is an...

New Method Measures Adherence To HIV Drug Prescriptions.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers have developed a more accurate way to determine how well people with HIV are sticking to their drug regimens. The new method involves a combination of measures, including a dated...

Antioxidant Drugs May Prevent Adverse Effects On Brain.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Antioxidant drugs may help prevent the effects of HIV on the brain, according to a preliminary study using cell cultures. The study was presented during the American Academy of Neurology's...

Soluble Fas Ligand Levels Act As Progression Markers.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Patients with AIDS dementia have elevated levels of soluble Fas antigen (sFas) and sFas ligand (sFasL), researchers in Sweden report. F. Sabri and...

Burundi Joins Countries Signing Pact With Drug Providers.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The government of Burundi has become a member of the agreement to increase access to HIV/AIDS medicines in partnership with the pharmaceutical industry and five United Nations agencies. ...

Gay/Bisexual Men Sexually Abused As Children Are More Likely To Engage In Unsafe Sex.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Men who have sex with men (MSM) who are victims of childhood sexual abuse are more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior than other MSMs, say researchers from the University of California, San...

Cytokine Involvement In HIV Wasting Syndrome Can Be Determined From Urine Levels.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Levels of cytokine in urine can provide important information to researchers studying their involvement in HIV wasting syndrome, according to researchers...

Participants Sought For Phase I Study of Experimental Ad 5 HIV-1 Vaccine.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Institute of Human Virology, Maryland, is conducting a Phase I, placebo-controlled study to examine the safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of an experimental Ad5 HIV-1gag vaccine being...

Increasing Antiretroviral Resistance To HIV-1 Reported In U.K.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The prevalence of transmitted HIV drug resistance in the United Kingdom is increasing, according to a study the May 3, 2001, issue of the British Medical Journal. This finding emphasizes the...

NIH Branch Announces Plan To Fight Malaria, HIV, and Tuberculosis.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The NIAID Global Health Research Plan for HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Tuberculosis provides short-, mid-, and long-term objectives for battling these diseases by building on the Institute's strong...

AIDS Immunosuppression Can Increase Cancer Risk.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Immune system degradation caused by AIDS increases the risk of some forms of cancer, say researchers. M. Frisch and colleagues at the Statens Serum...

Alcohol Use Can Damage Bone Marrow.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Alcohol consumption by HIV infected patients can degrade the blood cell-producing ability of their bone marrow, especially when combined with...

Nef Protein Doesn't Need Diacidic Sequence For COP Binding.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Contrary to previous reports, researchers in France say that HIV Nef protein can interact with other coat proteins (COP) without a motif suspected to...

Firm Fined for Selling Unapproved AIDS Test.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A Florida company has been ordered to pay $347,500 in penalties for selling HIV saliva test kits without federal approval. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not licensed any...

NewsRx Network Chosen As Source For 'Information Therapy'.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- NewsRx Network, Atlanta, Georgia, the leading provider of life science databases and daily and weekly health news, now is a major source for "information therapy." NewsRx databases are derived...

Young HIV(+) Girls At Risk For Bone Damage.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Young girls infected with HIV have an increased risk for calcium insufficiency and bone degradation, researchers in Maryland warn. "Early diagnostic...

Condom Misconceptions Abound Among Sexually Active Adolescents.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by N.R. Saltmarsh, staff medical writer - The combustible mix of ignorance and sexual activity is underscored by new data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, which reveal...

Sexual Exposure Is A Major Means Of HIV Spread Among Injection Drug Users In San Francisco.
May 21, 2001... 2001 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- HIV infection among injection drug users (IDUs) in San Francisco, California, is strongly associated with sexual behavior, with men who have sex with men (MSM) and women who trade sex for money...