Latest news with #NRTIs
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Alzheimer's disease could be prevented by antiviral drug already on market
An existing drug for HIV could double as a preventative therapy for Alzheimer's disease, according to researchers. NRTIs (nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors) are antivirals that are approved to treat HIV infection, but scientists from UVA Health at the University of Virginia found that patients taking them were less likely to develop the common form of dementia. There was a roughly 10% annual reduction in the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease in people taking NRTIs for every year of use of these drugs, according to lead study author Dr. Jayakrishna Ambati, M.D., professor of ophthalmology at UVA, who spoke to Fox News Digital about the finding. Alzheimer's Brain Treatment Shows Promising Results In New Study After coming across another mechanism that could potentially prevent Alzheimer's, the researchers analyzed 24 years of health insurance data, including 270,000 patients. The Alzheimer's risk reduction among patients taking NRTIs was "significant and substantial," the researchers wrote in the findings, which were published in the journal Alzheimer's & Dementia. Read On The Fox News App Now, the UVA team is calling for clinical trials of NRTIs to gauge their use for treating Alzheimer's. Approximately 10 million people worldwide are diagnosed with the common dementia each year. Alzheimer's Rates Have Reached Staggering Number As Experts Call For Change "This level of protection could translate into 60,000 fewer cases of Alzheimer's disease every year in our country, and up to one million fewer cases every year around the world," Ambati told Fox News Digital. In addition to keeping the HIV virus from replicating, NRTIs also prevent the activation of inflammasomes, proteins that are involved in the development of Alzheimer's. "We had previously shown that NRTIs blocked the inflammasome, so it wasn't altogether surprising that people taking NRTIs might be protecting against this disease," Ambati noted. "However, the degree of protection against Alzheimer's was quite surprising." Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Health and Fox News senior medical analyst, was not involved in the study but commented on the findings. "Inflammasomes are intracellular protein complexes that trigger the release of inflammatory cytokines," he told Fox News Digital. "HIV uses these inflammasomes to fight the immune system." "These chemicals are likely responsible for making Alzheimer's worse, or for accelerating the process of cognitive decline based on neuro-inflammation." Rebecca Edelmeyer, Ph.D., vice president of Scientific Engagement at the Alzheimer's Association in Chicago, also reviewed the study's findings, which she called "interesting." 'I'm A Neurologist — Here's Why Dementia Is Rising And How To Reduce Your Risk' "Further research and specifically designed clinical trials are needed to fully understand the potential future use of NRTIs to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's, but the study highlights the potential role drug repurposing can play in advancing new Alzheimer's treatments," she told Fox News Digital. Repurposing existing drugs can offer a "promising pathway," according to Edelmayer. As existing drugs' safety and side effects are often already known, the studies can be quicker and less expensive than with new treatments, she added. The research team acknowledged some limitations of the study. "Like all retrospective health insurance database studies, the findings of our study are an association between this class of drugs and the development of Alzheimer's disease," Ambati told Fox News Digital. "They don't necessarily provide a cause and effect — however, the fact that we found this link in multiple databases increases confidence in this result." Siegel agreed that the new study is observational, but noted that it takes place over many years. "It also shows that only this particular HIV drug — inflammasome — dramatically decreases the risk of Alzheimer's, not the other HIV drugs, including protease inhibitors," the doctor said. "I think this is convincing preliminary evidence that warrants further study," Siegel added. "It is very possible that this drug may be useful in Alzheimer's prevention, given the increasing evidence implicating immune dysregulation and inflammation as causes of AD." Looking ahead, the researchers have developed a new drug called K9. Like NRTIs, the novel medication blocks inflammasomes, but is "safer and more effective," according to Ambati. Click Here To Sign Up For Our Health Newsletter "The fact that the new drug reversed memory loss and improved spatial learning in mice further increases confidence in our findings," he told Fox News Digital. The UVA team now plans to test K9 in clinical trials for Azheimer's. Ambati noted that people should not take NRTIs for Alzheimer's prevention unless they are in the context of a clinical trial. "If interested, they should be on the lookout for such trials for themselves or loved ones who may be affected," he advised. For more Health articles, visit Nearly seven million people in the U.S. are currently living with Alzheimer's, and the number is expected to reach 13 million by 2050, according to the Alzheimer's Association. The UVA study was funded in part by the UVA Strategic Investment Fund and the National Institutes of article source: Alzheimer's disease could be prevented by antiviral drug already on market
Fox News
15-05-2025
- Health
- Fox News
Alzheimer's disease could be prevented by antiviral drug already on market
An existing drug for HIV could double as a preventative therapy for Alzheimer's disease, according to researchers. NRTIs (nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors) are antivirals that are approved to treat HIV infection, but scientists from UVA Health at the University of Virginia found that patients taking them were less likely to develop the common form of dementia. There was a roughly 10% annual reduction in the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease in people taking NRTIs for every year of use of these drugs, according to lead study author Dr. Jayakrishna Ambati, M.D., professor of ophthalmology at UVA, who spoke to Fox News Digital about the finding. After coming across another mechanism that could potentially prevent Alzheimer's, the researchers analyzed 24 years of health insurance data, including 270,000 patients. The Alzheimer's risk reduction among patients taking NRTIs was "significant and substantial," the researchers wrote in the findings, which were published in the journal Alzheimer's & Dementia. Now, the UVA team is calling for clinical trials of NRTIs to gauge their use for treating Alzheimer's. Approximately 10 million people worldwide are diagnosed with the common dementia each year. "This level of protection could translate into 60,000 fewer cases of Alzheimer's disease every year in our country, and up to one million fewer cases every year around the world," Ambati told Fox News Digital. In addition to keeping the HIV virus from replicating, NRTIs also prevent the activation of inflammasomes, proteins that are involved in the development of Alzheimer's. "We had previously shown that NRTIs blocked the inflammasome, so it wasn't altogether surprising that people taking NRTIs might be protecting against this disease," Ambati noted. "However, the degree of protection against Alzheimer's was quite surprising." "It is very possible that this drug may be useful in Alzheimer's prevention." Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Health and Fox News senior medical analyst, was not involved in the study but commented on the findings. "Inflammasomes are intracellular protein complexes that trigger the release of inflammatory cytokines," he told Fox News Digital. "HIV uses these inflammasomes to fight the immune system." "These chemicals are likely responsible for making Alzheimer's worse, or for accelerating the process of cognitive decline based on neuro-inflammation." Rebecca Edelmeyer, Ph.D., vice president of Scientific Engagement at the Alzheimer's Association in Chicago, also reviewed the study's findings, which she called "interesting." "Further research and specifically designed clinical trials are needed to fully understand the potential future use of NRTIs to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's, but the study highlights the potential role drug repurposing can play in advancing new Alzheimer's treatments," she told Fox News Digital. Repurposing existing drugs can offer a "promising pathway," according to Edelmayer. As existing drugs' safety and side effects are often already known, the studies can be quicker and less expensive than with new treatments, she added. The research team acknowledged some limitations of the study. "Like all retrospective health insurance database studies, the findings of our study are an association between this class of drugs and the development of Alzheimer's disease," Ambati told Fox News Digital. "They don't necessarily provide a cause and effect — however, the fact that we found this link in multiple databases increases confidence in this result." Siegel agreed that the new study is observational, but noted that it takes place over many years. "It also shows that only this particular HIV drug — inflammasome — dramatically decreases the risk of Alzheimer's, not the other HIV drugs, including protease inhibitors," the doctor said. "I think this is convincing preliminary evidence that warrants further study," Siegel added. "It is very possible that this drug may be useful in Alzheimer's prevention, given the increasing evidence implicating immune dysregulation and inflammation as causes of AD." Looking ahead, the researchers have developed a new drug called K9. Like NRTIs, the novel medication blocks inflammasomes, but is "safer and more effective," according to Ambati. "The fact that the new drug reversed memory loss and improved spatial learning in mice further increases confidence in our findings," he told Fox News Digital. The UVA team now plans to test K9 in clinical trials for Azheimer's. Ambati noted that people should not take NRTIs for Alzheimer's prevention unless they are in the context of a clinical trial. "If interested, they should be on the lookout for such trials for themselves or loved ones who may be affected," he advised. Nearly seven million people in the U.S. are currently living with Alzheimer's, and the number is expected to reach 13 million by 2050, according to the Alzheimer's Association. The UVA study was funded in part by the UVA Strategic Investment Fund and the National Institutes of Health.
New York Post
12-05-2025
- Health
- New York Post
Doctors discover drug already on the market ‘could prevent 1 million new cases of Alzheimer's' a year
Alzheimer's affects nearly 7 million Americans, a number that's expected to spike to 13.9 million by 2060. Given the devastating effects of this incurable disease, the hunt is on for a drug that could help prevent or slow its progression. Now, a new study has found that nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) — a common class of medications for HIV — could dramatically decrease the risk of developing this neurodegenerative disorder. A new study has found that a common class of medications could dramatically decrease the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Eric Hood – Analyzing data from over 270,000 patients aged 50 and older, researchers observed that the risk of Alzheimer's decreased by 6% to 13% for each year the patients were on NRTIs. These results are — to say the least — incredibly promising. 'It's estimated that over 10 million people around the world develop Alzheimer's disease annually,' said Jayakrishna Ambati, founding director of the University of Virginia Center for Advanced Vision Science. 'Our results suggest that taking these drugs could prevent approximately 1 million new cases of Alzheimer's disease every year.' NRTIs are primarily used to prevent HIV from replicating inside the body. Ambati's team discovered that these drugs also inhibit inflammasomes — immune system components implicated in Alzheimer's development. The risk of Alzheimer's decreased by 6% to 13% for each year the patients were on nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors. Atthapon – The next step would be to test NRTIs in clinical trials, although Ambati noted his team has already devised another drug that is going down that route. 'We have also developed a new inflammasome-blocking drug called K9, which is a safer and more effective version of NRTIs,' Ambati said. 'This drug is already in clinical trials for other diseases, and we plan to also test K9 in Alzheimer's disease.' The study was published last week in the journal Alzheimer's and Dementia. This finding adds to a growing number of potential Alzheimer's treatments. A compound found in rosemary and sage — carnosic acid — has been shown to reverse memory loss and reduce brain inflammation in mice with Alzheimer's, bringing their cognitive function back to near-normal levels. A study from Stanford Medicine found that seniors who received the shingles vaccine were 20% less likely to develop dementia over seven years. And researchers at Penn State and Stanford University discovered that a certain cancer drug could restore memory and brain function in early-stage Alzheimer's models.
Medical News Today
12-05-2025
- Health
- Medical News Today
Alzheimer's: HIV drugs may offer ‘significant' protection
New research suggests that HIV drugs may have a protective effect against Alzheimer's. Willie B. Thomas/Getty Images Researchers at UVA Health have found that a class of HIV drugs called nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) may significantly reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Their large-scale analysis of United States health insurance data revealed that patients taking these medications had up to a 13% lower risk of Alzheimer's disease each year. Based on these findings, the team is calling for clinical trials to test whether these drugs could be used to help prevent Alzheimer's. In their new research, they found that people taking these medications are significantly less likely to develop the condition. The team had earlier discovered a possible biological mechanism explaining how the drugs might offer protection against Alzheimer's. Alzheimer's disease is the leading cause of dementia, responsible for approximately 60% to 80% of all cases in the United States. It most commonly begins in individuals ages 65 and older. Motivated by this, the researchers examined two major U.S. health insurance databases and found that the risk of developing Alzheimer's dropped by 6% per year in one dataset and by 13% per year in the other among patients on NRTIs. Jayakrishna Ambati, MD, founding director of UVA's Centre for Advanced Vision Science and a professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Virginia School of Medicine, and senior of the study, explained the key findings to Medical News Today : 'We analysed health insurance databases of tens of millions of people and made the surprising discovery that people taking a group of anti-HIV drugs called NRTIs had a ~10% reduction in the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease for every year that they took these drugs.' — Jayakrishna Ambati, MD NRTIs are commonly used to stop HIV from replicating in the body. However, Jayakrishna Ambati and his research team had previously found that these drugs also block the activation of inflammasomes, key immune system components that have been linked to the development of Alzheimer's disease. This discovery led them to investigate whether patients taking NRTIs, which also treat hepatitis B, might have a lower risk of developing Alzheimer's. To explore this, the team analysed long-term health data from two major U.S. sources: 24 years of records from the Veterans Health Administration, which predominantly includes male patients, and 14 years from the MarketScan database, which covers a more diverse, commercially insured population. They focused on individuals ages 50 and older who were being treated for HIV or hepatitis B and who had no prior diagnosis of Alzheimer's. The researchers identified over 270,000 qualifying patients and assessed how many later developed Alzheimer's. After accounting for potential confounding factors, such as existing health conditions, they found that those taking NRTIs experienced a marked and meaningful reduction in Alzheimer's risk. The researchers observed that the reduced risk of Alzheimer's was specific to patients taking NRTIs and was not seen in those using other types of HIV medications. This distinction led them to conclude that NRTIs should be formally tested in clinical trials to assess their potential to prevent Alzheimer's disease. If proven effective, the impact could be substantial. With nearly 7 million Americans currently affected by Alzheimer's and projections indicating that number could double to 13 million by 2050, the need for preventive treatments is growing. In addition, the financial burden is expected to rise sharply, with the annual cost of care for Alzheimer's and related dementias projected to increase from $384 billion today to nearly $1 trillion in the coming decades, according to the Alzheimer's Association. 'It's estimated that 10 million people develop Alzheimer's disease around the world every year. A 10% reduction in risk could have a dramatic effect on the impact and burden of Alzheimer's,' Dr Ambati explained. 'There are some ongoing clinical trials of NRTIs in Alzheimer's disease that are showing some interesting anti-inflammatory effects. Since NRTIs can have some rare but serious side effects, we have developed a modified version called K9 that has the beneficial anti-inflammatory effect without those side effects. K9 is already in clinical for eye diseases, and we are planning to start trials in Alzheimer's disease as well.' — Jayakrishna Ambati James Giordano, PhD, Professor Emeritus of Neurology and Biochemistry, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, who was not involved in the research, told MNT that 'this is an interesting retrospective study.' 'It provides evidence that use of nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) that have been used to treat human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and which inhibit development of inflammasomes, is positively correlated to a reduced incidence of Alzheimer's disease.' 'This is noteworthy in that several lines of converging evidence have shown that bodily and cerebral inflammatory states can induce production of both tau and amyloid proteins in brain that are contributory to the pathology of [Alzheimer's],' Giordano added. 'Inflammasomes are cellular proteins that aggregate and form discrete structures both in response to tau and amyloid aggregation, as well as following certain viral and bacterial infections, trauma, alterations in immune function, and exposure to various stressful environmental factors.' —James Giordano, PhD 'Inflammasomes induce changes in mitochondrial function, cell metabolism, calcium regulation, can contribute to the formation of neural plaques and tangles, and can induce a form of cell death, which has been implied in the genesis of Alzheimer's,' Giordano explained. Inflammation, NRTIs, and Alzheimer's 'This study strengthens the hypothesis that inflammasome-mediated inflammatory processes are operative in Alzheimer's and offers potential direction for the development of NRTI type drugs and molecular agents aimed at mitigating inflammasome development as a viable treatment – or perhaps preventive intervention – for Alzheimer's.' —James Giordano, PhD
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Vir's hepatitis B combo falls short in Phase II trial
Vir Biotechnology's 'functional cure' combination therapy has failed to meet the efficacy endpoints in a Phase II trial in hepatitis B. The company reported data from the 24-week point of the ongoing MARCH Phase II trial (NCT04856085) where just 17% (3/18) and 21% (3/14) of patients with baseline hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) <1,000IU/mL receiving tobevibart and elebsiran without or with peginterferon, respectively, achieved undetectable HBsAg. The trial also evaluated tobevibart and elebsiran without or with peginterferon as a functional cure. This was achieved in 11% and 15% of patients, respectively. Functional cure for hepatitis B is defined as sustained undetectable HBsAg and hepatitis B virus DNA below the lower limit of quantification (0.05IU/mL) at 24 weeks post-end of treatment after discontinuing nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs). The study also looked at a modified definition of functional cure that allowed brief increases in virus levels for up to 35 days. Using this measure, 11% of patients treated with tobevibart and elebsiran alone, and 23% of those who also received peginterferon, showed signs of a functional cure. Vir said the safety and tolerability profile of tobevibart and elebsiran remains consistent with prior studies. Previously, Vir said the investigational combo reduced hepatitis B surface antigens at the same 24-week time stamp. Chronic hepatitis B is a long-lasting, inflammatory liver disease caused by the hepatitis B virus. The World Health Organization estimates that 254 million people live with hepatitis B, and an estimated 1.1 million deaths a year are associated with the disease. Complications may include liver cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer. Vir Biotechnology presented the data at the 2025 European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL) congress in Amsterdam. Tobevibart is a monoclonal antibody developed by Vir while elebsiran is an Alnylam-discovered siRNA. In a Phase II trial (NCT05461170) in hepatitis D, the combination was more effective, with all six patients showing sustained virologic response at the time of the last visit and all patients achieving hepatitis D virus RNA < limit of detection (LOD) or ≥ 2 log10 IU/mL decrease from baseline. Vir Biotechnology is waiting to gain a partner to advance the combination therapy to Phase III studies. A Phase III trial of the combination in hepatitis D is currently recruiting patients (NCT06903338). "Vir's hepatitis B combo falls short in Phase II trial" was originally created and published by Clinical Trials Arena, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
