From: "ANNE WILSON, CDC NAC" AIDS Daily Summary November 1, 1993 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public service only. Providing this information does not constitute endorsement by the CDC, the CDC Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC Clearinghouse should be cited as the source of this information. Copyright 1993, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD "Researchers Create Molecule to Block AIDS Infection" Wall Street Journal (11/01/93) P. A11A French researchers have created a type of molecules that they say are able to block AIDS infection in test-tube research. In lab trials, the molecule CDR3 blocks the entry doors on three cell types targeted by HIV: lymphocyte, macrophage, and intestinal cells, according to the team at North Marseille Hospital. "Thanks to this molecule, we managed to stop, in the laboratory, not only the infection of the target cells by the HIV-1 virus, of European stock, but also an African virus, HIV-2," said virologist Jacques Fantini, one of the researchers. He compared the discovery to "a pass key that allows one to block all the locks to stop the virus from entering healthy cells." The process still must be verified in mice and monkeys, but is an "important step in basic research against AIDS," said Jurphaas Van Rietschoten, research director at the National Center for Scientific Research, which oversaw the work. "It's a hope, not a guarantee," he said, cautioning that it is uncertain whethere the molecule will prove toxic in animals or humans. "AIDS Activists Protest at Capitol" United Press International (10/29/93) (Sorensen, Andy) Sacramento--More than 90 activists from the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT-UP) staged a political funeral Friday before the Capitol to protest California Gov. Pete Wilson's policy towards people with AIDS. The group accused Wilson of cutting AIDS funding, and denounced his veto of a needle exchange bill that would have provided clean syringes to intravenous drug users who turned in dirty ones. Dressed in black and pulling a rolling casket to symbolize those who have died from AIDS, the protestors chanted "Pete Wilson you can't hide, we charge you with homicide." They were prevented from reaching the Capitol steps by a wall of police in riot gear and on horseback, and a brief clash ensued in which five members of ACT-UP were injured. The protest ended shortly after a woman sprinkled into the air the final ashes of a man who died of AIDS. "Until the government is willing to implement preventive measures, we're going to get nowhere in fighting the spread of this dreadful disease," said event organizer Edward Wold. Shannon Bowman, spokesperson for the state Health and Welfare Agency, defended Wilson's veto of the needle exchange bill. "The governor is spending millions of dollars on saying it is wrong to use drugs," she said, adding that evidence that the programs reduce the spread of the virus "was not clear enough to send a mixed message." Bowman also refuted claims that the governor cut AIDS spending. She asserted that spending has increased from $115 million to $148 million in the past three years. "AIDS Agency in Chaotic State, Critics Charge" Washington Times (10/29/93) P. C8 (Barras, Jonetta Rose) Critics attest that the Agency for HIV/AIDS in Washington, D.C., is "in a state of chaos." Indeed, the agency has been plagued with numerous problems from as far back as a year ago, when an agency employee was sent on a $2,000 trip to the Virgin Islands for a conference which records indicate he never registered for or attended. Some employees and activists suggest that government money is abused by staff and contractors; one employee insists that the organization's education programs are "seriously off the mark." There have been charges of discrimination in contracting, and some say divisions within the office are affecting service. Racial undertones, in fact, ran throughout the agency's most recent problem, which involved the dismissal of agency director Caitlin Ryan and two other high-level officials. The incident began when Dr. Abdul Alim Muhammad, medical director of the Abundant Life Clinic in the District, accused Ryan of improperly steering a $100,000 contract away from his organization because of his affiliation with the Nation of Islam. An internal investigation found that Ryan did tamper with the award, and she was promptly fired. This, internal disputes, and the other problems persisting in the Agency for HIV/AIDS are so bad that the office appears to be having difficulty retaining a new director. The prime candidate recently turned down the position, saying that the agency was much too troubled. "Danish Police Find Stolen HIV Test Tubes" Reuters (10/29/93) Copenhagen--Danish police have found 70 of the 75 test tubes of HIV that were stolen from a Copenhagen hospital, and arrested a suspect of the theft. The test tubes were taken from a locked freezere at Hvidovre Hospital, where they were being used for research purposes. The thief may have believed that they contained drugs which could be sold, said authorities. Police discovered 69 of the test tubes in a Copenhagen apartment after the arrest of a 30-year-old man; one more was found in a park frequented by drug addicts. The suspect denied stealing the test tubes, reported a police spokesperson. "AIDS Sufferer Surrender Ends Riviera Hostage Drama" Reuters (10/31/93) Nice, France--A man with AIDS detained three hostages in a French Riviera clinic for six hours before surrendering early Sunday after his brother, a police officer, convinced him to give up, said authorities. Christophe Azouzi, 32, a former patient of the Sainte-Marie clinic, had demanded $120 million and a helicopter in exchange for the release of two nurses and a friend of one of the nurses whom he held captive. According to police, Azouzi was suicidal but agreed to surrender after long telephone conversations with doctors and his brother, who is part of a police anti-terrorist squad. Azouzi set the hostages free unharmed and was taken to a Nice police station for questioning. "Dinkins Administration Failed to Spend $11 Million in Federal AIDS Funds" United Press International (10/29/93) (Byron, Peg) New York--The Dinkins administration reported recent calculations indicating that New York City will fail to spend about $11 million of an allocated $44 million from the Ryan White Care Act before the year ending in April 1994. AIDS Policy Coordinator Ronald Johnson said he hoped the money would be used more quickly in the future, but admitted obstacles of New York contradicting rules and problems starting programs for infected homeless people and drug addicts. This year's unspent money will be used for primary care and housing for New Yorkers ill with tuberculosis or HIV, as well as for projects in a newly released AIDS plan by the Dinkins administration. The new plan will expand services and focus special attention on women and AIDS orphans. New York City is responsible for the nation's largest concentration of women with AIDS, and claims that half of all mothers who die leave their children without parents. The Ryan White Care Act has been increased by 40 percent for next year, and the city could receive as much as $90 million, said Barry Gordon, AIDS coordinator for the Public Health Service's local office. Said Mayor David Dinkins, "We very desperately need to spend not only that money, but we need more." "Scandal of Blood Plasma Untested for HIV Broadens in Germany" United Press International (10/31/93) Berlin--Germany's HIV scandal grew Sunday as a second firm was charged with supplying blood plasma not screened for the AIDS virus, and as hospitals began reviewing records to identify patients who received untested blood. Pharm Dessau was charged with the knowing distribution of plasma which had not been tested for HIV. Last week, another supplier called UB Plasma was shut down on similar charges. Meanwhile, hospitals throughout the country are reviewing transfusion records from the past several years. One hospital in Torgau used 87 units of untested blood supplied by UB Plasma in just the past four or five weeks, according to the interior ministry of the state of Saxony, where the hospital is located. The Association of Hospitals in Lower Saxony cautioned that checking records would be an expensive undertaking. German political leaders, in the meantime, demanded tougher laws to regulate the blood plasma industry. "Poll: Teens Want Hillary Clinton for Prez in 1996" United Press International (10/28/93) New York--Today's teenagers think that Hillary Clinton should be elected U.S. president in 1996, and view AIDS as the nation's leading problem, reveals a recent survey that polled 5,000 young people across the country on such topics as their sexual and political opinions. Teens pointed to AIDS as America's worst problem, followed by crime, the economy, and education. Although they identified the deadly virus as the most important issue, 63 percent of teens still believe that sex before marriage is okay for responsible teens, and 74 percent say birth control should be available to high school students. "Arena's Bold AIDS Play Focuses on Home, Family" Baltimore Sun (10/28/93) P. 4E (Rousuck, J. Wynn) The nation's oldest continuously operating black community theater will present a play that revolves around something that African-Americans are becoming all too familiar with--AIDS. Cheryl West's "Before It Hits Home," the first major drama to portray the effect of the deadly disease among blacks, imparts much essential information about AIDS but focuses especially on nature, home, and the limitations of familial love. The script is bold in its language, depiction of the disease, and treatment of the lead character's bisexuality. The play itself centers around jazz sax player Wendal Bailey, who discovers he has AIDS and tells his male lover, but cannot bring himself to confront his girlfriend. Partner notification, thus, becomes an important theme and lesson of the play. Weak and discouraged, the protagonist visits home, where his mother abandons him when he needs her most and his father, who has always complained of his son's shortcomings, dishes out unconditional love. "Before It Hits Home" is being staged by the Arena Players in Baltimore, Md., through Nov. 14. "AIDSFront: Medical Briefs" Advocate (10/19/93) No. 640, P. 33 With testing of gp160 beginning in August, Massachusetts became the first state to sponsor testing of an AIDS therapy that is the reverse of others. The new therapy uses a vaccine to fight infection that has already taken hold in the body. Conventional vaccines aim to prevent infection, but this latest therapy intends to battle viruses once they have invaded the immune system. The trial is being conducted by the HIV/AIDS bureau of Massachusetts' department of public health, and is being funded with $150,000 in state funds. The trial will examine the effects of gp160 on 140 HIV/AIDS patients. "Genelabs Technologies Inc. Reports Preliminary Results of Phase II Clinical Trial for AIDS Drug--GLQ223--at Scientific Conference" Business Wire (10/18/93) Redwood City, Calif.--Genelabs Technologies Inc. recently presented preliminary results of its Phase II study of GLQ223, an anti-viral compound, against AIDS and AIDS-related complex. The results were reported by the principal investigator, James O. Kahn, assistant clinical professor at the University of California at San Diego and associate director of the AIDS program at San Francisco General Hospital. Patients randomized to AZT, GLQ223, or a combination had similar rates of CD4 cell decline, said Kahn. Data analyses, however, implied treatment-associated benefits for GLQ223 in clinical, immunologic, and virologic parameters. ------- End of Forwarded Message