Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1993. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
San Francisco Chronicle - Saturday, December 11, 1993
Alex Barnum, Chronicle Staff Writer
In a report today in The Lancet, a British medical journal, the researchers said the patients showed no evidence of AIDS antibodies in their blood with the standard "western blot" antibody test but tested positive for antibodies with an experimental urine test. The results were later confirmed by more sophisticated tests, the researcher said.
The finding was made by Dr. Howard Urnovitz, a microbiologist and founder of Calypte Biomedical, a Berkeley biotechnology company, and researchers from the National Cancer Institute, the Maimonides Medical Center in New York, the University of California and the Pasteur Institute in Paris.
The researchers said the finding adds to an "increasing body of work suggesting" that some people may be immune to the AIDS virus, although leading AIDS experts expressed caution about drawing conclusions from the discovery.
The researchers reported that none of the seven patients have developed symptoms of AIDS. In a follow-up study, two of the seven tested negative for HIV antibodies in their urine, raising the possibility that the patients have fought off the virus completely.
"We now believe that some individuals may be able to contain or eliminate the virus from their bodies altogether," Urnovitz said. "What this tells me is that there is hope in reversing HIV infection if we pay attention on how to do it."
The patients were discovered while Calypte Biomedical was conducting a national clinical study measuring its still-experimental urine test against the standard "western blot" test. Five were found at a sexually transmitted disease clinic at San Francisco General Hospital.
One possible explanation for the finding is that the immune system is "compartmentalized." Urnovitz said the patients' immune systems may be successfully fending off the AIDS infection in every part of the body except the urinary-genital tract.
The body may be using the antibody defense in that area because it is more accustomed to fighting the various bacteria, such as mycoplasma, chlamydia and other sexually transmitted diseases, that are found there.
Copyright © 1993 - San Francisco Chronicle Press. All rights reserved. Reproduced with permission. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the San Francisco Chronicle, Permissions Desk, 901 Mission Street, San Franciso, CA 94103. You may also send a fax to (415) 495-3843, or an email message to chronperm@sfgate.com. http://www.sfgate.com.
AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted funding from Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, Elton John AIDS Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, Pacific Life Foundation and donations from users like you.
Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 1993. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.
Copyright ©1980, 1993. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .