Xref: utzoo sci.med.aids:1853 soc.motss:27817 Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!samsung!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!ucla-cs!dgreen@cs.ucla.edu From: dgreen@cs.ucla.edu (Dan R. Greening) Newsgroups: sci.med.aids,soc.motss Subject: Re: AIDS and Drugs Message-ID: <34196@shemp.CS.UCLA.EDU> Date: 13 Apr 90 19:09:02 GMT Sender: news@CS.UCLA.EDU Lines: 37 Approved: Dan R. Greening Note: Copyright 1990 by Daniel R. Greening. Permission granted for Note: non-commercial reproduction. Archive-number: 1958 Steve Dyer writes: >Dan Greening writes: >>Many allergy medications do down your T-cell response. Beconase, for >>example, is supremely effective at this. >Beconase is a corticosteroid, not an antihistamine. I am not challenging >its effects on the immune system. Beconase is also an allergy medication, which was the original topic that you challenged. If you were referring solely to antihistamines, you should have said so. >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. OK, the reference will take work and time to get. Someone is investigating. (You now owe me one.) Here is the jist from a conversation with an NIH research staff member, who is likely to know. There is no evidence that antihistamines down the immune system's response to the HIV virus. However, there is evidence that antihistamines alter immune system function. Specifically, some T cells have antihistamine receptors. Based on that, and a drop in my T-cell response to gp160, I was asked to stop taking both corticosteroids and antihistamines. I expect to get the reference(s) on Tuesday, and they will be posted then. Hope that helps. -- Dan Greening | NY 914-784-7861 | 12 Foster Court dgreen@cs.ucla.edu | CA 213-825-2266 | Croton-on-Hudson, NY 10520