title: Depletion of muscle mitochondrial DNA in AIDS patients with zidovudine-induced myopathy.
abstract: Long-term zidovudine therapy in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection can cause a destructive mitochondrial myopathy with histological features of ragged-red fibres (RRF) and proliferation of abnormal mitochondria. In 9 zidovudine-treated patients with this myopathy we found severely reduced amounts (up to 78% reduction vs normal adult controls) of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in muscle biopsy specimens by means of Southern blotting. In 2 HIV-positive patients who had not received zidovudine, muscle mtDNA content did not differ from that in the 4 controls. Depletion of mtDNA seems to be reversible, since 1 patient showed a substantial reduction in RRF and a concomitant pronounced increase in muscle mtDNA content after zidovudine therapy was discontinued. Depletion of muscle mtDNA is probably due to zidovudine-induced inhibition of mtDNA replication by DNA polymerase gamma and is not a secondary effect of HIV infection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Arnaudo
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dalakas
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shanske
authors.forename: C T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Moraes
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: DiMauro
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Schon
mesh_terms: D001345:Autoradiography; D015342:DNA Probes; D004261:DNA Replication / Q000187:drug effects; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000187:drug effects*; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008931:Mitochondria, Muscle / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000187:drug effects; D009220:Myositis / Q000139:chemically induced*; D015215:Zidovudine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*
chemical_list: D015342:DNA Probes; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial; D015215:Zidovudine