Certain HIV Drugs May Prevent Common Cause of Vision Loss
university press release. “This finding provides real hope in developing the first treatment for this blinding disease.”The class of NRTIs includes such common HIV drugs as Viread, Retrovir, Videx, Ziagen, and many others.
They work against HIV by blocking reverse transcriptase, one of the enzymes the virus uses to reproduce its DNA. The researchers decided to analyze the effects of drugs that block DNA production after they realized that the buildup of a certain type of DNA known as Alu can contribute to dry macular degeneration — the thinning of the macula, the portion of the retina responsible for clear vision in a person’s direct line of sight — by destroying a layer of cells that nourishes the retina.The UVA researchers are calling for.
