Date: Mon, 17 Apr 1995 12:44:20 +0500
From: ghmcleaf{CONTRACTOR/ASPEN/ghmcleaf}%NAC-GATEWAY.ASPEN@ace.aspensys.com
Subject: CDC Nat. AIDS Hotline Training Bul. #128


           CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION
                       HIV/AIDS PREVENTION
           CDC NATIONAL AIDS HOTLINE TRAINING BULLETIN
.................................................................

February 23, 1995                                           #128

This is a statement from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
concerning gene therapy for HIV infection.

In the Feb. 18, 1995, Lancet, Sandra H. Bridges, Ph.D., and Nava
Sarver, Ph.D., review the state-of-the-science in gene therapy for
HIV disease and discuss other innovative approaches to boost or
restore the immune systems of HIV-infected individuals.  Both Dr.
Bridges and Dr. Sarver are in the Division of AIDS at the National
Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).

HIV gene therapy involves inserting into human cells a gene that
confers resistance to HIV infection and then infusing these altered
cells into a person infected with HIV.  Such therapy may help limit
HIV replication and spread within the body and delay progression of
HIV disease.

Five NIAID-supported gene therapy trials for HIV disease have been
approved or are awaiting approval by the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration.  One approach involves splicing a gene for
molecules called ribozymes into CD4+ T cells.  Ribozymes can cut
HIV's genetic material and may prevent infection of new cells.
Another study will determine whether a modified form of an HIV
protein called Rev, produced by a gene inserted into immune cells,
can prevent the killing and depletion of the cells by competing
with normal HIV Rev.

Drs. Bridges and Sarver also discuss the future of HIV gene
therapy, which may include the use of harmless viruses or non-viral
agents such as tiny spheres called liposomes or gold particles to
deliver protective genes into a patient's cells.

Other technologies discussed in the paper include infusions of
certain cells, grown to large quantities in the laboratory, to help
restore immune function in HIV-infected individuals, and the use of
"naked DNA" vaccines to enhance an HIV-infected person's immune
response to the virus.