title: Inhibition of HIV replication in vitro by clinical immunosuppressants and chemotherapeutic agents.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recent studies have suggested that a functional cure for HIV-1 infection, purportedly resultant from allogeneic bone marrow transplantation, may be possible. Additionally, the first such patient was treated with whole-body irradiation, immunosuppressants, and the chemotherapeutic, cytarabine. However, the precise role of the coinciding medical interventions in diminishing detectable HIV reservoirs remains unstudied.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In this article, we demonstrate that the immunosuppressants, mycophenolic acid and cyclosporine, and the chemotherapeutic, cytarabine, are potent antiretroviral agents at clinically relevant dosages. These drugs strongly inhibit HIV-1 replication in a GFP indicator T cell line and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study suggests that certain clinical immunosuppressants and chemotherapeutic agents may act combinatorially to inhibit HIV infection. Additionally, chemotherapy-mediated cytotoxicity may also affect the stability of viral reservoirs. Thus, further study is needed to examine potential therapeutic value of these interventions in patients.
authors.affiliation: National Center for Biodefense and Infectious Diseases, Department of Molecular and Microbiology, George Mason University, 10900, University Boulevard, Manassas, VA, USA. ywu8@gmu.edu.
authors.forename: Todd
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hawley
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Spear
authors.forename: Jia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Yuntao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wu