An HIV vaccine: half the picture
Most of the HIV vaccines that are currently on trial will not stop people catching the virus, but will only delay rather than stop people developing Aids, and may only have marginal effects on the epidemic’s death toll. The problem, says Holland’s Dr Jaap Goudsmit, was that we are missing half the picture in HIV vaccines. No vaccine yet developed had managed to produce a ‘neutralising antibody’ response in the body. This is the kind of immune response necessary to prevent viruses entering and infecting cells.
Do the Sustiva one-step
The potent non-nucleoside HIV drug efavirenz, marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb as Sustiva, is now available in a one pill, once a day formulation. BMS have replaced the dose of three yellow capsules with one brown 600mg pill. “Our research shows that even reducing the pill burden by two a day has a positive effect on adherence,” said Chelsea and Westminster’s Dr Graeme Moyle at the product’s launch.
More bad news for d4T
A new study has recently found a higher rate of certain toxicities among patients taking d4T (stavudine, Zerit) than those taking other nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (RTI) drugs. Dr Anton Pozniak, of London’s Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, reported on the updated findings from the global Gilead 903 study, which compared patients taking d4T (plus two other drugs) with those taking the Gilead’s newer nucleotide RTI tenofovir (Viread). Seven per cent of those on the d4T-containing regime experienced peripheral neuropathy, compared with two per cent on tenofovir. Furthermore, patients on d4T experienced a sevenfold greater increase in the blood fats called triglycerides compared with those on tenofovir.
Stigma and attitude affect HIV treatment success
Recent research shows that the negative attitudes of HIV positive patients about their disease and the associated stigma may undermine the success of drug therapy. The research proves that the stigma attached to HIV infection can adversely affect a patient’ psychological state. Dr Steven Safren of Massachusetts General Hospital said: “The advancements in treatment success, combined with the