WASHINGTON (AP) -- A prominent immunologist was named Wednesday to
head the National Institutes of Health's AIDS research programs.
   Dr. William Paul, best known for his discovery of a key immune
system molecule that is attacked by the AIDS virus, will head the NIH's
Office of AIDS Research.
   Congress, under pressure from AIDS activists, last spring
reorganized the office, giving it more personnel and power to direct
federally funded research into the viral plague.
   As director of OAR, Paul will coordinate NIH's $1.3 billion AIDS
research budget, plan AIDS policy with scientists, activists and
lawmakers, and oversee federally funded research at some 21 NIH
institutes.
   "I am confident that Dr. Paul has the scientific acumen and
leadership qualities needed to re-evaluate and shape our approach to
AIDS and ensure we are doing all we can to combat it," said NIH
Director Dr. Harold Varmus, who appointed Paul on Wednesday.
   AIDS activists praised Paul. His appointment is "the strongest of
signals from the Clinton administration and NIH leadership that AIDS
research is a top priority," said Derek Hodel of the AIDS Action
Council.
   Paul currently is immunology chief at the National Institute of
Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the NIH arm that has shouldered the
bulk of the agency's AIDS research.
   He is best known for the discovery of interleukin-4, an
immune-activating molecule that is defective in patients with HIV, the
AIDS virus that attacks key immune cells. NIH is testing various forms
of interleukin to see if it will improve immune system activity.