AIDS drug trials may be virus stopper

A U.S. pharmaceutical company is trying to get complete human data on a drug proven to prevent HIV in monkeys more than 12 years ago.

Gilead Sciences Inc., Foster City, Calif., has been selling tenofovir as an AIDS treatment drug but it hasn't been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for prevention.

FDA approval for preventative medicine is more stringent than treatments, putting more emphasis on side effects.

When it was discovered by University of Washington scientists in 1994, tenofovir was touted as a pill that may stop the AIDS epidemic, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Tenofovir is sold under the name Viread and as part of a "drug cocktail" of AIDS and HIV treatments called Truvada.

But tests in countries where AIDS rates are soaring and healthcare lacks have been shut down by politics. Critics claim the pill will encourage dangerous sexual behavior while governments have succumbed to the pressure and blocked trials.

Funded with grants and working with other U.S. researchers, Gilead plans testing the pill as a preventative medicine in Thailand, Botswana, Peru and other countries.

Copyright 2006 by United Press International

Citation: AIDS drug trials may be virus stopper (2006, May 18) retrieved 28 March 2024 from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2006-05-aids-drug-trials-virus-stopper.html
This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.

Explore further

Teaching positive psychology skills at school may be one way to help student mental health and happiness

 shares

Feedback to editors