AIDSWEEKLY Plus; Monday, December 22, 2003
Staff Medical Writers

According to published research from France, "Recent findings support an indirect relationship between T-cell depletion in HIV-1 infection and the rate of virus replication with implications for treatment strategies."

A. Achour and coauthors at the Fifth University of Paris "initiated a new approach to recover immune function through the use of novel chemical agents."

"A cationic amphiphilic drug that binds to Ca2+-calmodulin at high concentrations, [10-{3-(4-methyl-1-piperazinyl)-propyl}-2-(trifluoromethyl)-H-10-phenothiazine dihydrochloride] [denoted trifluroperazine dihydrochloride (Tfp); molecular weight 480.43] TFP was found at low concentrations (10^-6 to 10^-10 M) to help T cells from AIDS patients to restore proliferation in vitro," they explained in the journal Virology. Test results showed that "the Tfp molecule can restore the cell survival of T lymphocytes from PBMCs derived from HIV-1-infected patients in vitro."

"Tfp enhances T-cell proliferation and Th-cell responses by selectively inhibiting cell mortality and apoptosis," according to the report. "The restored antigen-specific response is associated with the synthesis of IL-2 and gamma-interferon."

"Even though this drug does not possess any detectable antiviral effect, it might be considered as a potential therapeutic agent in HIV-infected patients, to correct immune defects," the investigators concluded. "Besides antiviral compounds, these data may facilitate immune reconstitution in patients with HIV infection and other immunosuppressive diseases."

Achour and colleagues published the results of their research in Virology (T cell survival/proliferation reconstitution by trifluoperazine in human immunodeficiency virus-1 infection. Virology. 2003 Oct 10;315(1):245-58.

For additional information, contact A. Achour, Fifth University of Paris, Laboratory of Interferons and Sarcolectine, Biomedical Center of St. Peres, 47 Rue St. Peres, F-75270 Paris 06, France.

The publisher of the journal Virology can be contacted at: Academic Press Inc., Elsevier Science, 525 B St., Ste. 1900, San Diego, CA 92101-4495, USA.

The information in this article comes under the major subject areas of AIDS & HIV, Immunology and Pharmaceutical & Drug Development.

This article was prepared by AIDS Weekly editors from staff and other reports.

Reference

Achour A, Lu W, Arlie M, et al., "T cell survival/proliferation reconstitution by trifluoperazine in human immunodeficiency virus-1 infection", Virology. 2003 Oct 10;315(1):245-58.

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