An April 4, 2014, article published
on the online edition of the
Los Angeles Times highlighted the results of a new study that suggests the
immunosuppressant drug sirolimus, which is also known as
rapamycin, reduces levels of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (
Can a transplant drug help eliminate lingering HIV infections?)
.The study was published in the on-line edition of the
American Journal of Transplantation.
In the study, researchers at the University of California Department of Medicine analyzed blood records of 91 HIV-positive kidney transplant patients who received sirolimus. Analysis of the blood showed that transplant patients who received sirolimus had lower levels of HIV DNA. “We were pleasantly surprised,” commented study co-author Dr. Steven Deeks, a professor of medicine at the University of California. “It’s difficult with any drug to affect the [HIV] reservoir.”
Researchers speculate that sirolimus’s ability to reduce inflammation and prevent the immune system’s T-cells from producing a protein called CCR5 explains the reduced HIV DNA levels. Further research will be needed to investigate the effects of sirolimus on HIV. Says study co-author Dr. Peter Stock, "we saw a very important, statistically significant signal, but I wouldn't jump on this bandwagon that sirolimus is going to cure HIV. It does require a bigger study."
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