From server@aspensys.com Wed Nov 27 09:12:25 1996 Received: from casti.com (vector.casti.com [199.181.80.100]) by qrd.rdrop.com (8.6.9/8.6.9) with ESMTP id JAA01224 for ; Wed, 27 Nov 1996 09:12:23 -0800 Received: from aspen3.aspensys.com by casti.com (8.6.9/NX3.0M) id MAA06510; Wed, 27 Nov 1996 12:07:39 -0500 Received: by aspen3.aspensys.com (SMI-8.6/SMI-SVR4) id MAA20719; Wed, 27 Nov 1996 12:12:46 -0500 Date: Wed, 27 Nov 1996 12:12:46 -0500 Message-Id: <9610278491.AA849122750@smtpinet.aspensys.com> Errors-To: shelly_olim_at_aspenpo@smtpinet.aspensys.com Reply-To: aidsnews@cdcnac.aspensys.com Originator: aidsnews@cdcnac.aspensys.com Sender: aidsnews@cdcnac.aspensys.com Precedence: bulk From: "Flynn Mclean" To: qrd@vector.casti.com Subject: CDC AIDS Daily Summary 11/22/96 X-Listprocessor-Version: 6.0c -- ListProcessor by Anastasios Kotsikonas X-Comment: CDC National AIDS Clearinghouse AIDS Daily Summary November 22, 1996 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 National AIDS Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction of this text is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold, and the CDC National AIDS Clearinghouse should be cited as the source of this information. Copyright 1996, Information, Inc., Bethesda, MD ****************************************************** "AIDS Among Children--United States, 1996" "AIDS-Free in 1991, Cambodia Tops HIV Rate" "Across the USA: Kentucky" "World AIDS Day--December 1, 1996" "111 Kenyans Died of AIDS Daily" "Access to New AIDS Drug Demanded; Not Yet Approved" "Many HIV-Positive Patients Use Alternative Therapies" "AIDS--Confidentiality in AIDS Cases" "Quantitative Image Analysis of HIV-1 Infection in Lymphoid Tissue" "Ribozymes Enter Clinical Trials for HIV-1 Treatment" ****************************************************** "AIDS Among Children--United States, 1996" Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (11/22/96) Vol. 45, No. 46 Of the total number of AIDS cases reported by Sept. 30, 1996, 7,472, or 1 percent, were among children aged less than 13 years. Most children with HIV contracted the virus from their mothers. The number of children infected perinatally from 1986 to 1996 peaked in 1992. In 1994, research showed that treating HIV-infected pregnant women with zidovudine (ZDV) could reduce such transmissions by two-thirds. Recommendations were issued by the Public Health Service in 1994 and 1995 for HIV counseling of pregnant women and voluntary testing and treatment. The number of annual perinatal infections decreased 27 percent from 1992 through 1995. In addition, confidential reporting of HIV infection in children is required in 28 states. An editorial note suggests that the rate of perinatal transmissions may have declined, in part, due to the recommended use of ZDV therapy. "AIDS-Free in 1991, Cambodia Tops HIV Rate" Washington Times (11/22/96) P. A16 Although Cambodia had virtually no AIDS cases five years ago, the country now has the highest HIV infection rate in Asia. Health officials estimate that 1 percent of the population, including 2.5 percent of pregnant women, is infected with HIV. The spread of the virus is attributed to prostitution and a lack of condom use. "Across the USA: Kentucky" USA Today (11/22/96) P. 8A About 50 residents of Kentucky will be subjects in a study of a vaccine designed to prevent HIV-infected individuals from developing AIDS. "World AIDS Day--December 1, 1996" Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (11/22/96) Vol. 45, No. 46, This year's World AIDS Day, with the theme "One World, One Hope," will be observed on December 1 in 190 countries. AIDS has claimed the lives of 5.8 million people worldwide, including 1.3 million children. In the United States, World AIDS Day activities are coordinated by the American Association for World Health, the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS, the Pan American Health Organization, and the Department of Health and Human Services. The National AIDS Hotline, operated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, can provide more information about HIV and AIDS, and World AIDS Day. Telephone numbers are 1-800-342-2437, 1-919-361-8400, 1-800-344-7432 (Spanish), and 1-800-243-7889 (TTY). Additional information is available at the CDC National AIDS Clearinghouse, 1-800-458-5231 or 1-301-217-0023, and the CDC Home Page, located at http://www.cdc.gov/nchstp/hiv aids/worldaid/worldaid.htm. "111 Kenyans Died of AIDS Daily" Xinhua News Agency (11/22/96) An average of 111 Kenyans died from AIDS each day between January 1995 and June 1996, the Daily Nation reports. Assistant Minister for Health Basil Criticos said the figure represents only a third of the actual number of people suspected of having AIDS. AIDS officials have estimated that more than 1.7 million people in Kenya may be infected with HIV by the end of the year. "Access to New AIDS Drug Demanded; Not Yet Approved" U.S. Newswire (11/21/96) Clinical trials are needed to test the safety and efficacy of new AIDS drugs for children and pregnant women, claims Bonita Judon, of the AIDS Policy Center for Children, Youth and Families. Judon will testify to a committee of the Food and Drug Administration today to urge their consideration of such trials. "There is such a feeling of hope for adults living with AIDS. We must do everything possible to safely offer these new drugs to children and pregnant women who need them now," noted David C. Harvey, director of the center. "Many HIV-Positive Patients Use Alternative Therapies" Reuters (11/21/96) Physicians of AIDS patients should be aware that many HIV-infected people use alternative therapies, and do not always inform their doctors. A University of Nevada in Las Vegas survey of 127 HIV-positive patients found that 100 percent were using alternative therapies. Moreover, previous research published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that 70 percent of patients who use such therapies did not tell their doctors. Doctors should, therefore, be careful not to misconstrue side effects or drug interactions that may be caused by therapies they have not prescribed. "AIDS--Confidentiality in AIDS Cases" PANA Wire Service (11/21/96); Mulenga, Mildred The issue of AIDS confidentiality, and the potential problems it causes, was discussed at a conference of experts in Zimbabwe Thursday. "If we stick to confidentiality, what about the wife at home who doesn't know that her husband has AIDS," asked a physician who treated several AIDS patients. The potential threat of spreading HIV to children was also discussed, as was the expense of an HIV test that deters many people. One participant suggested that the government provide voluntary testing to help stem the spread of the disease. "Quantitative Image Analysis of HIV-1 Infection in Lymphoid Tissue" Science (11/08/96) Vol. 274, No. 5287, P. 985; Haase, Ashley T.; Henry, Keith; Zupancic, Mary; et al. The amount of HIV-1 in the body is considered a reliable measure of the progress of the infection, but little is known about the virus' ability to replicate and reside in lymphoid tissue. Ashley T. Haase, of the University of Minnesota Medical School, and colleagues, developed a method of determining viral load in the immune system's mononuclear cells (MNCs) and the follicular dendritic cells (FDCs) of the lymphoid tissue. They report that, before symptoms of HIV infection develop, a large, relatively stable viral load is maintained on the FDCs while a smaller viral burden infects the MNCs. Estimates of the numbers of infected cells in the lymphoid tissues and the amount of virus they could produce, the authors say, are consistent with the amount of virus detected in the bloodstream. Haase et al. say their findings will facilitate the study of virus production and storage in the lymphoid tissues over the course of infection and treatment. "Ribozymes Enter Clinical Trials for HIV-1 Treatment" Lancet (11/09/96) Vol. 348, No. 9032, P. 1302; Rowe, Paul M. Diseases caused by RNA viruses may be treated by destroying specific RNA sequences with ribozymes. This strategy has proven successful in cell-culture experiments and in preclinical studies, and the first phase I trial of a ribozyme is being conducted now in patients infected with HIV-1. Previous studies have shown that, in vitro, a retroviral vector could protect CD4 T-cells from HIV-1 infection by encoding two ribozymes that cleave two critical HIV-1 sequences. In the phase I trial, led by Flossie Wong-Staal of the University of California at San Diego, blood is taken from the patient, the vector is added, and the T-cells with added ribozyme genes are returned to the patient. To evaluate the trial, the survival time of cells carrying the ribozyme will be compared to those without the ribozyme. The first patient in the small trial was injected with the treated cells in September. Depending on the results, phase II trials will advance with the same vector, or another vector will be tested in a phase I trial.