title: High-dose interferon-alpha2a exerts potent activity against human immunodeficiency virus type 1 not associated with antitumor activity in subjects with Kaposi's sarcoma.
abstract: Anti-human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) activity was assessed in HIV-1-infected homosexual and bisexual men receiving 18-36 MIU/day of recombinant interferon (IFN)-alpha2a for Kaposi's sarcoma (KS). The median baseline HIV-1 RNA level was 4.99 log10 copies/mL. Seventeen subjects (68%) showed an RNA decline > or = .5 log10/mL, with a maximum at week 4 (median decline = 1.91, range = 3.64-1.15; P = .0007), after which RNA levels stabilized. Eight subjects (32%) with lower median initial CD4+ T cell counts (60 vs. 350 x 10(6)/L; P = .01) did not show RNA responses. Neither RNA nor KS responses were negatively affected by IFN-alpha2a dose modifications. Anti-HIV responses of KS responders (n = 15) and nonresponders (n = 10) did not differ. High-dose IFN-alpha can exert potent anti-HIV activity that is not associated with anti-KS activity.
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Diseases, Tropical Medicine, and AIDS, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: P H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Frissen
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: de Wolf
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Reiss
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Bakker
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Veenhof
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Danner
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Goudsmit
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Lange
mesh_terms: D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000821:virology; D000328:Adult; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D012514:Sarcoma, Kaposi / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D012367:RNA, Viral; D011994:Recombinant Proteins