Abstract
Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) infection of newborn rhesus macaques is a practical animal model of pediatric AIDS. Intravenous inoculation of rhesus newborns with uncloned SIV(mac) resulted in a high virus load, no antiviral immune responses, severe immunodeficiency, and a high mortality rate within 3 months. In contrast, immediate oral zidovudine (AZT) treatment of SIV-inoculated rhesus newborns either prevented infection or resulted in reduced virus load, enhanced antiviral immune responses, a low frequency of AZT-resistant virus isolates, and delayed disease progression with negligible toxicity. These results suggest that early chronic AZT treatment of human immunodeficiency virus-exposed newborns may have benefits that outweigh its potential side effects.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 125-131 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy |
Volume | 39 |
Issue number | 1 |
State | Published - 1995 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pharmacology (medical)