Xref: utzoo soc.motss:27816 sci.med.aids:1852 Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!samsung!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!ucla-cs!dyer@spdcc.com From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) Newsgroups: soc.motss,sci.med.aids Subject: Re: AIDS and Drugs Keywords: AIDS drugs Message-ID: <34195@shemp.CS.UCLA.EDU> Date: 13 Apr 90 17:16:42 GMT References: <90Apr12.131553edt.10055@neat.cs.toronto.edu> <2830@milton.acs.washington.edu> <1990Apr12.203218.26408@ecn.purdue.edu> <2469@ursa-major.SPDCC.COM> <34172@shemp.CS.UCLA.EDU> Sender: news@CS.UCLA.EDU Reply-To: dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) Organization: S.P. Dyer Computer Consulting, Cambridge MA Lines: 31 Approved: Dan R. Greening Note: Copyright 1990 by Daniel R. Greening. Permission granted for Note: non-commercial reproduction. Archive-number: 1957 In article <34172@shemp.CS.UCLA.EDU> dgreen@squid () writes: >Sorry Steve. Circumstantial evidence suggests it is true. Many allergy >medications do down your T-cell response. Beconase, for example, is supremely >effective at this, which is why you are supposed to stop taking it if you >get a cold. It is great stuff, but I've also noticed that I'm more >susceptible to infections when I'm on it. Beconase is a corticosteroid, not an antihistamine. I am not challenging its effects on the immune system. >I have been told on occasion to stop taking ANY allergy medications >except Nasalcrom before getting blood-work at NIH. Why? Because >anti-histamines and steroids knock down the T-cell response to gp160, >one of the proteins on the HIV-coat. Why do I know this? Because it >happened to me. I don't think this material is published, though. >I can ask. Do you really want a reference? There is a difference between attempting to control a population in a research group on antibody development to HIV proteins and making a claim that antihistamines increase your susceptibility to the AIDS virus. I would appreciate a reference if you can get one. >Nasalcrom seems to be OK because it only inhibits mast cell production. Well, that's not quite what it does. It inhibits the antigen-mediated release of autacoids such as histamine from mast cells. -- Steve Dyer dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer dyer@arktouros.mit.edu, dyer@hstbme.mit.edu