Translational eradication approaches.

Purpose Of Review: More than two decades after the recognition of HIV-1, not a single person has been cured. Although dramatic decreases in morbidity and mortality have been obtained with therapy, life-long antiretroviral therapy remains unrealistic for most patients. Replication-competent HIV-1 remains present in cellular and anatomical reservoirs even after years of undetectable viremia, leading to replication rebound each time therapy is interrupted.

Metabolic evaluation of HIV-infected patients receiving a regimen containing lopinavir/ritonavir (Kaletra).

Purpose: We have analyzed retrospectively the evolution of metabolic parameters in a cohort of 159 HIV-infected patients taking a lopinavir/ritonavir-containing regimen during a mean period of 15 months.

Method: This study was completed by an additional evaluation after strict 12 hours fasting of total cholesterol (TC), HDL-c, LDL-c, triglycerides (TG), glucose, and insulin levels in a subset of 100 patients from the cohort.

Results: TC and TG levels increased early after introduction of lopinavir/ritonavir, but remained subsequently stable.

Predictors of plasma human immunodeficiency virus type 1 RNA control after discontinuation of highly active antiretroviral therapy initiated at acute infection combined with structured treatment interruptions and immune-based therapies.

Thirty patients with acute human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 infection received a combination of 3 antiretroviral drugs (n=15) or 4 antiretroviral drugs plus hydroxyurea and interleukin-2 (n=15) for 24 months, followed by 1-3 structured therapeutic interruptions (STIs). Viral control, defined as maintaining plasma viremia <5000 copies/mL without therapy, was achieved in 14 cases. Lymphocyte subsets, plasma HIV-1 RNA loads, proviral DNA loads in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), residual HIV-1 RNA loads in PBMCs and in lymph node cells, and anti-p24 lymphoproliferative response were measured.

Stavudine in the face of cross-resistance between HIV-1 nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors: a review.

Despite the current availability of over 15 antiretroviral drugs, diminishing antiretroviral options due to drug cross-resistance constitute a real challenge beyond first-line therapy. Although stavudine (d4T) shares several resistance mutations with other drugs in its class -i.e.

The HYDILE trial: efficacy and tolerance of a quadruple combination of reverse transcriptase inhibitors versus the same regimen plus hydroxyurea or hydroxyurea and interleukin-2 in HIV-infected patients failing protease inhibitor-based combinations.

Purpose: To compare the efficacy and tolerance of a stavudine (d4T), didanosine (ddI), efavirenz (EFV), and abacavir (ABC) combination regimen with an identical regimen plus hydroxyurea (HU), or plus HU and interleukin-2 (IL-2), in patients failing protease inhibitor-based combinations and naive of EFV and ABC.

Method: This was a randomized prospective trial in 69 HIV-infected patients recruited in one clinical center. Antiretroviral drugs were administered at standard doses according to weight.

Correlation between surrogate markers, viral load, and disease progression in HIV-1 infection.

Surrogate markers generally used for observation of patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and their plasma and cellular viral load were assayed in a series of 40 patients before initiation of zidovudine therapy. Plasma viremia was positive in 62.5% of patients and was statistically correlated with clinical stage, CD4+ T cell count, CD8+ T cell count, beta 2-microglobulin level, neopterin level, and immunoglobulin A level.

Role of autoimmunity in protein S deficiency during HIV-1 infection.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the role of autoimmune mechanisms in the pathophysiology of protein S deficiency during HIV-1 infection. In a prospective study the correlation between protein S activity and the presence of anti-protein S autoantibodies or anti-cardiolipin antibodies in HIV-1-positive patients and in a population of patients without HIV infection was investigated. Fifty-five HIV-1-infected patients and 15 hospitalized patients without HIV infection were analysed for protein S activity (functional assay), complement system activation, presence of autoantibodies against protein S (Dot Immunobinding) and levels of anti-cardiolipin IgG antibodies (ELISA).