Secretion of neurotoxins by mononuclear phagocytes infected with HIV-1
Article Abstract:
Neurological disease often develops in patients with AIDS. Impaired cognitive abilities develop in greater than 60 percent of patients with AIDS and more than 25 percent develop problems with the coordination of movement. The human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), which causes AIDS, is found primarily in various types of mononuclear phagocytes in the brain, such as microglia, macrophages, and macrophage-like giant cells. Since HIV-1 does not infect nerve cells directly, it is not certain how HIV causes dysfunction of the nerve cells. HIV-1 infected mononuclear phagocytes were shown to release toxic agents that destroyed nerves cells from chickens and rats that had been grown in tissue culture. The toxins were characterized and found to be small in size, stable under heat, and resistant to enzymes which destroy proteins. The toxins were found to work through a type of receptor that is sensitive to N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA). This receptor is thought to be involved in a number of neuropathic conditions, including stroke, neurological disease, brain trauma, and AIDS. Therefore, it is thought that the destruction of nerve cells in the brain that causes neurological disease in AIDS may be caused partially by the release of neurotoxins which bind to the NMDA receptor. It is possible that future treatments of AIDS may include those that would suppress activation of mononuclear phagocytes, block the synthesis of these neurotoxins, or protect the neurons by blocking the NMDA receptors. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: Science
Subject: Science and technology
ISSN: 0036-8075
Year: 1990
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The Enigmas of Kaposi's Sarcoma
Article Abstract:
The Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) tumor has a complex cellular composition, etiology, epidemiology, and pathogenesis. Various stimuli that promote microvascular inflammation initiate KS. One major stimulus is HIV-1 infection. The reason for male dominance, the development of an animal model and an explanation for the recent decline in KS are among the unresolved issues.
Publication Name: Science
Subject: Science and technology
ISSN: 0036-8075
Year: 1998
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