New study links HIV antiretroviral drugs to neuronal degeneration

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania (PA, USA) have demonstrated that the use of protease inhibitors in HIV treatment may lead to production beta amyloid, the protein commonly associated with Alzheimer’s disease.  These drugs could therefore be a key factor in causing HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders. The study, published recently in the American Journal of Pathology, investigated protease inhibitors ritonavir and saquinavir, both of which are widely used against HIV in less developed areas. Previous findings have suggested that protease inhibitors have toxic effects on the nervous system and could contribute to HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders. For example, it has been reported...