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Experimental Biology and Medicine 229:865 (2004)
© 2004 Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine

COMMENT

Nutrition and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

Julian L. Ambrus, Sr.1 and Julian L. Ambrus, Jr.

State University of New York at Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and Graduate School, Department of Internal Medicine, Buffalo General Hospital/Kaleida Health System, Buffalo, New York 14203

1 To whom requests for reprints should be addressed at SUNYAB–Buffalo General Hospital/Kaleida Health System, 100 High Street, Room E-320, Buffalo, NY 14203. E-mail: jlambrus{at}netscape.net

In a previous issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine, we published a Minireview (1) on the role of nutrition in infectious disease and related problems in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). We summarized our experience and previous publications. We pointed out that both caloric and micronutrient deficiency increased the severity of AIDS in patients. We made similar observations in relation to an animal model of AIDS. It was suggested that improving nutrition, particularly micronutrition (vitamins, minerals) may be the most efficient contribution to infectious disease–related morbidity and mortality in developing countries; it may also increase the efficacy of vaccination programs. This may have special value in treating AIDS. Since this Minireview was submitted, an article by Fawzi et al. (2) and an editorial by Marston and De Cock (3) have appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine indicating that, in a study of 1078 pregnant women in Tanzania, multivitamin supplementation significantly decreased progression of HIV infection–induced disease in more than 1000 pregnant patients. More detailed studies, particularly in other tropical diseases, appear to be well justified.

Another report, by Foster (4), which has appeared since the submission of our Minireview, pointed out that HIV-1 encodes the homologue of one of the human glutathione peroxidases at the expense of the host; this results in deprivation of its four basic components: selenium, cysteine, glutamine, and tryptophan. In a preliminary study in Botswana, supplementation with these components resulted in improvement of the status of AIDS patients, as quoted by the report (without giving actual data).

Footnotes

This work was supported in part by the National Institutes of Health, The John R. Oishei Foundation, and the Margaret Duffy and Cameron Troup Fund for Cancer Research.

References

  1. Ambrus JL, Sr., Ambrus JL, Jr. Nutrition and infectious disease in developing countries and problems of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Exp Biol Med 229:464–472, 2004.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  2. Fawzi WW, Msamanga GI, Spiegelman D, Wei R, Kapiga S, Villamor E, Mwakagile D, Mugusi F, Hertzmark E, Essex M, Hunter DJ. A randomized trial of multivitamin supplements and HIV disease progression and mortality. N Engl J Med 351:23–32, 2004.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
  3. Marston B, De Cock KM. Multivitamins, nutrition, and antiretroviral therapy for HIV disease in Africa. N Engl J Med 351:78–80, 2004.[Free Full Text]
  4. Foster HD. How HIV-1 causes AIDS: implications for prevention and treatment. Med Hypotheses 62:549–553, 2004.[Medline]




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