THE IN-VIVO EFFECT OF ELLIPTICINE ANALOGS ON THE BLOOD-CONCENTRATION OF FRIEND-VIRUS - A MURINE MODEL FOR STUDYING ANTI-HIV DRUGS

The viremia of a mouse carrying a murine retrovirus, the Friend virus, was taken as a model for screening drugs which could be active on the human HIV retrovirus. Ellipticine and two of its analogues injected i p at appropriate doses drastically reduced the viremia of the Friend v irus-injected mice, as measured by transfer of their serum on day 8 of the treatment to secondary recipients and numeration, in the spleens of the latter, of the foci the remaining virus had induced. Since phas e I and II trials have already been published (for leukemia treatment) , the efficacy of those drugs on HIV-1 positive AZT-resistant patients can be tested directly.