http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez

Virology. 2009 Dec 1.

Xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus is susceptible to AZT.

Sakuma R, Sakuma T, Ohmine S, Silverman RH, Ikeda Y.

Department of Molecular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, 200 First Street SW, Rochester, MN 55906, USA.

The xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus (XMRV) is a human retrovirus, recently isolated from tissues of prostate cancer patients with impaired RNase L activity.

In this study, we evaluated 10 licensed anti-HIV-1 compounds for their activity against XMRV, including protease inhibitors (PI), nucleoside reverse transcriptase (RT) inhibitors (NRTI), non-nucleoside RT inhibitors (NNRTI) and an integrase inhibitor.

No PI affected XMRV production; even high concentrations of Ritonavir failed to inhibit the maturation of XMRV Gag polyproteins.

Among the NRTI, NNRTI and integrase inhibitors used in this study, only AZT blocked XMRV infection and replication through inhibition of viral reverse transcription.

This sensitivity of XMRV to AZT may be explained by the modest homology in the motif D sequences of HIV-1 and XMRV reverse transcriptases.

If XMRV becomes established as an etiological agent for prostate cancer or other diseases, AZT may be useful for preventing or treating XMRV infections in humans.

PMID: 19959199 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

As the first set of testing the effectiveness of 10 antiretoviral drugs against XMRV has shown that only AZT was active against the virus, it is good to also be aware of the medications risks/toxicity. Below was a comment by Dr Rich Van K, one of my favorite CFS researchers

L&B
Dr T

With the recent report of the effectiveness of AZT against XMRV in vitro,
some people with CFS have expressed interest in considering treatment with
AZT before further research has been completed. I think it's important to
know some facts about AZT in considering such a plan of action.

For information, the following is a quotation of the FDA-required black box
warning in the 2008 edition of the Physician's Desk Reference, page 1560,
under Retrovir (zidovudine) [also known as AZT]:

"WARNING

RETROVIR (ZIDOVUDINE) HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH HEMATOLOGIC TOXICITY
INCLUDING NEUTROPENIA AND SEVERE ANEMIA PARTICULARLY IN PATIENTS WITH
ADVANCED HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS (HIV) DISEASE.

PROLONGED USE OF RETROVIR HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH SYMPTOMATIC MYOPATHY.

LACTIC ACIDOSIS AND SEVERE HEPATOMEGALY WITH STEATOSIS, INCLUDING FATAL
CASES, HAVE BEEN REPORTED WITH THE USE OF NUCLEOSIDE ANALOGUES ALONE OR IN
COMBINATION, INCLUDING RETROVIR AND OTHER ANTIRETROVIRALS."

Rich Van Konynenburg, Ph.D.
richvank@aol.com