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2 F (I], y4jih'jrogidus Monday, June 29, 1987
urprise arrival in '80s of deadly new disease
spurs efforts to develop essential research dataWHO GETS AIDS
So far, the majority of
AIDS victims in the United
States have been homosex-
ual or bisexual men. Intrave-
nous drug users are the sec-
ond largest group.
Blood transfusion recipi-
ents account for 2 percent of
AIDS cases reported to date.
That proportion is decreasing
for new cases as blood test-
ing programs have increased
the safety of the blood sup-
ply. Heterosexual transmis-
sion of AIDS has become an
increasingly common source In
of infection. u
SOURCE: U.S. Centers for Disease ControlADULT AIDS *
AIDS AMONG CHILDREN
Gay or bisexual men:
24,341 or 66%
Undetermined:
1,115 or 3%
emophiliacs:
336 or 1% ~
f Transfusion-related
cases: 764 or 2%
Heterosexuals:
1,419 or 4%travenous dru Gay or bisexu
users: 6,091 or 17% who also use
drugs: 2,804
'Total exceeds 100 percent because of roundingual men
intravenous
or 8%Contracted from
/infected parent:
403 or 78%
Undetermined:
23 or 4%
Hemophiliac:
29 or 6%PP \
Transfusion-related:
61 or 12%INCIDENCE OF AIDS
The first cases of AIDS in the United States
were diagnosed in 1981. Since then, the number
of reported cases has increased each year. Ac-
cording to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control,
the number of U.S. AIDS cases is now doubling
every 14 months.
Worldwide, 52,064 cases of AIDS have been
reported to the World Health Organization (as of
June 17), but experts believe the actual numberof cases to be much higher.
Projections by health agencies indicate the
number of people infected with the AIDS virus will
continue to grow. The U.S. Public Health Service
estimates that 1 million to 1.5 million Americans
are now infected with the AIDS virus; it is un-
known how many will eventually develop AIDS.
But the agency estimates that 20 to 30 percent of
those now infected will develop the disease in theAIDS IN U.S. YEAR-BY-YEAR
15,000 Cases Eventual13
Cae EenulDeaths 1,13
5,819
12,000 (Cases are recorded in year of
diagnosis. Death may have 6,806
9,000 occurred in subsequent years.)x
5,627
6,000 4,466 L- 4,332
2,805 951
2,398 74
3,000 1,012--'
75 265 879
0 63 239 MBefore 1981 1982 1983
1981
SOURCE U.S. Centers for Disease Control1984 1985 1986 Jan. 1-
June 22
1987next few years, and that in 1991 there will be
74,000 new cases of AIDS for a total by the end
of that year of 270,000. Deaths in 1991 are pro-
jected to be 54,000, bringing the total number of
deaths to 179,000.
Such estimates are highly uncertain; recent
studies suggest that the actual number of victims
will be even higher than current official projec-
tions.U.S. AIDS TOTALS
40,000
32,000
24,000
16,000
8,000(Cumulative number of cases and deaths) 33,054
20,670
37,386 -
21,621
~ 19,541 T -TA
14,851
9,784
8,045
4,157 -
340 1,352 3,579
302 1,181
End of 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 June 22
1981 1987Researchers recount latest AIDS findings
By Tom Siegfried
Science Editor of The News
AIDS is an issue that isn't going to
go away.
More than 10 million people
around the world have been infected
with the virus that causes acquired
immune deficiency syndrome, a dis-
ease unknown a decade ago. Nobody
knows how many of those people will
contract the disease. Nobody knows
how many more will be infected in
the years ahead. Nobody knows how
many will die before medical science
can find a cure.
There are many more unknowns
in the story of AIDS, the medical mys-
tery drama of the '80s. But scientists
have also accumulated a vast amount
of knowledge in the six years since
the new affliction was recognized by
health officials.
In particular, researchers have un-
covered one crucial clue: the disease
is caused by a peculiar type of virus
that attacks the body's disease de-
fense system. A body weakened by an
active virus is powerless to fight off
various forms of cancer, pneumonia
and other infectious diseases. No one
struck by AIDS has recovered.
Knowing the cause of AIDS is, ofcourse, not enough. Researchers also
want to devise a cure to save the lives
of those who already have the dis-
ease, and develop a vaccine to pre-
vent healthy people from getting it.
About 6,000 experts from SO coun-
tries met in Washington, D.C., this
month to discuss their progress
toward achieving those goals. No
breakthroughs or potential cures
were announced; nevertheless, the
conference participants reported on a
number of new findings to add to the
growing body of knowledge about
AIDS. Among those reports:
A new AIDS virus appears to be
spreading in Nigeria.
Researchers have already identi-
fied two viruses related to HIV, the vi-
rus that causes most known cases of
AIDS. The fourth virus does not ap-
pear to be a major threat, but it could
complicate efforts to develop a vac-
cine for AIDS prevention.
People injected with an experi-
mental AIDS vaccine produced anti-
bodies against the virus.
Dr. Daniel Zagury, who conducted
the test in Africa on himself and vol-
unteers, said it was an encouraging
step but that a vaccine for public use
is not imminent. It isn't known
whether the antibodies producedwould be sufficient to fight off an in-
fection.
Chimpanzees given an experi-
mental AIDS vaccine developed anti-
bodies to the AIDS virus, but the anti-
bodies did not prevent infection.
The test vaccine was made with a
protein from the coat of the AIDS vi-
rus. The results of the tests were dis-
appointing, but scientists are continu-
ing their research .to see if modifica-
tions will make the vaccine work.
The risk of getting AIDS rises
sharply five years after the time of in-
fection.
Many people infected with the
AIDS virus show no symptoms of dis-
ease, even several years after expo-
sure to the virus. But new studies sug-
gest the risk of getting sick goes up
each year, so that ultimately -a high
percentage of infected people will de-
velop AIDS symptoms.
An experimental AIDS drug
shows promise and appears to have
fewer side effects than AZT, the only
prescription drug now approved for
AIDS.
Expanded human trials are
planned for the drug, called DDC.
Kaposi's sarcoma, a cancer com-
mon in victims of AIDS, is caused by
the overproduction of a growth chem-ical due to the effects of the AIDS vi-
rus on cells.
Most cancers involve the rapid
proliferation of malignant cells. The
difference in Kaposi's sarcoma might
mean that it could be treated with
drugs that interfere with the growth-
inducing chemicals.
Test-tube experiments of a possi-
ble vaccine underlined a danger of
using traditional vaccine strategies.
With most vaccines, a dead or al-
tered virus - incapable of causing
disease - is given to people to boost
their defenses against the real virus.
Tests of an altered AIDS virus found,
however, that it soon mutated into
the deadly form.
Cases of AIDS transmitted by het-
erosexual activity are increasing
faster than other categories.
Officials blamed intravenous drug
abuse for carrying the virus to a num-
ber of people who then infected their
sex partners.
AIDS has been linked to an out-
break of tuberculosis, heart infection
and pneumonia among drug users.
Many drug users may be dying
from these diseases - because of in-
fection with AIDS - without medical
authorities being aware of the AIDS
link, officials said.I
scription use to treat AIDS.
May 1987: British research-
ers report individual genetic
differences in susceptibility
to AIDS.
June 1987: Zagury reports
tests showing that an ex-
perimental vaccine induced
production of AIDS antibo-
dies in human subjects, but
it is not known if the anti-
body response would offer
sufficient protection against
Daniel Zagury exposure to the virus.HOW AIDS IS TRANSMITTED
Scientists have documented only three routes for spreading
AIDS:
Through homosexual or heterosexual intercourse.
Through contact with transplanted organs or bodily fluids,
such as blood transfusions or blood on contaminated needles
shared by drug users.
From mother to child, either before or during birth. (Possibly
also through breast milk).
The World Health Organization reported in June that no evi-
dence exists to indicate that the AIDS virus can spread through
tears, saliva, or normal kissing. The organization's report added
that "while unproven, some theoretical risk from vigorous 'wet'
kissing (deep kissing or tongue kissing) may exist."
A recent report from the U.S. surgeon general states that
"There is no known risk of non-sexual infection in most of the
situations we encounter in our daily lives. We know that family
members living with individuals who have the AIDS virus do not
become infected except through sexual contact. There is no evi-
dence of transmission (spread) of AIDS virus by everyday con-
tact even though these family members shared food, towels,
cups, razors, even toothbrushes, and kissed each other."
The World Health Organization report said there is no evi-
dence to suggest that AIDS can be spread by "Insects, food,
water, toilets, swimming pools, sweat, tears, shared eating or
drinking utensils, or other items, secondhand clothing and tele-
phones."STEPS IN AIDS INFECTION
Infection with virus
Development of AntibodiesContinuing
without
symptomsReco
$
Carrier without
symptoms
Swollen glands,
other symptoms
not life-threatening
Continuing
very ? illnessARC or AIDS
Death
AIDS is considered the final phase of infection by the AIDS
virus, but the full-scale disease may be preceded by other
stages. Some people infected with the virus have lived for years
without symptoms, but it is impossible to say whether they will
always remain symptom-free.SYMPTOMS OF AIDS
Some people infected with the AIDS virus show no symptoms
for years. Others have symptoms less severe than those in full-
scale AIDS, exhibiting a condition known as AIDS-related com-
plex, or ARC. Symptoms of ARC may include:
Loss of appetite, weight loss
Night sweats
Skin rashes
Diarrhea
Tiredness
Swollen lymph nodes
ARC Is a serious disease that can be fatal. People with ARC
may go on to develop full-scale AIDS.
Symptoms of full-scale AIDS include any of a number of in-
fectious diseases that are able to progress in the body because
the AIDS virus has disabled the immune system.
One of the most common opportunistic infections is Pneumo-
cystis carinii, a form of pneumonia. Symptoms may include per-
sistent cough and fever, shortness of breath or difficult breath-
ing.
Another common infection in AIDS victims is Kaposi's sar-
coma, a form of cancer. Symptoms include multiple purple
blotches and bumps on the skin.
In some AIDS victims, the virus attacks the nervous system,
causing damage to the brain. Symptoms may include memory
loss, mental disorder, loss of coordination or partial paralysis.'N
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AIDS CHRONOLOGY
1970: Researchers discover reverse transcriptase, an en-
zyme involved in the reproduction of retroviruses.
1980 Robert Gallo and co-workers at the U.S. National
Cancer Institute isolate the first human retrovirus, human
T-cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-l).
Early 1961: Doctors in New York and San Francisco diag-
nose what later is to be known as acquired immune defi-
ciency syndrome, or AIDS.
June 5, 1981: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control issues
a report on occurrences of Pneumocystis carinhi pneumo-
nia in five young homosexual men.
1982: Epidemiological evidence suggesting that AIDS is a
new infectious disease is developed by the Centers for
Disease Control.
February 1983: Gallo proposes that AIDS is probably
caused by a retrovirus.
May 1983: French researcher Luc Montagnier and others
publish the isolation and identification of a retrovirus
(later called lymphadenopathy-associated virus, or LAV),
in cultures of T cells derived from a patient with lympha-
denopathy-associated syndrome (LAS).
May 1983: Myron Essex of Harvard and co-workers detect
antibodies that react with HTLV- membrane protein in 25
to 30 percent of AIDS patients.
September 1983: Montagnier and co-workers report: (1)
the identification of LAV-like viruses from five patients
with lymphadenopathy and three patients with AIDS; (2)
the affinity of the virus for T4 white blood cells; (3) the
presence of antibodies against the virus in patients with
LAS and AIDS.
September 1983: Gallo and co-workers report the pres-
ence of HTLV-l antibodies in 10 percent of AIDS patients.
March-April 1984: Montagnier and others confirm previ-
ous isolation of an LAV-like virus from one hemophiliac.
May 1984: Gallo's group reports isolation of HTLV-ll from
AIDS patients and introduces the Western blot technique
for detecting antibodies. Antibodies are detected in 88
percent of 48 patients with AIDS, 79 percent of 14 homo-
sexuals with pre-AIDS and less than 1 percent of hun-
dreds of heterosexuals. The group also identifies
glycoprotein gp4l as a major segment of the virus. Later,
it is shown to be a component of the HTLV-III envelope
that crosses the membrane.
July 1984: Montagnier and others publish (1) the isolation
of LAV from T4 cells of a healthy carrier of the virus; (2)
the inhibition of T4 cell growth at the time of test-tube
virus production; (3) the simultaneous disappearance of
the T4 antigen at the surface of the infected T4 cells.
August 1984: Jay Levy and others isolate a virus related
to LAV from San Francisco AIDS patients.
October 1984: Daniel Zagury, Gallo and co-workers iso-
late HTLV-lIl from cells cultured from semen of two pa-
tients with AIDS.
November 1984: Gallo and others report the cloning of
HTLV-Ill virus.
December 1984: Montagnier and co-workers report the
cloning of LAV-1.
December 1984: Several researchers show that the T4
molecule is involved in the receptor to the virus.
1985: Controlled trials of drugs to fight AIDS begin in the
United States.
January 1985: The genetic sequence of the AIDS virus is
established independently at the Pasteur Institute, at the
NCI/NIH, at Genentech Inc. and at Chiron, revealing the
similarity of the various viruses.
January 1985: G.M. Shaw, Gallo and co-workers discover
the presence of HTLV-Ill in the brain.
March 1985: Gallo and others report heterosexual trans-
mission of HTLV-I.
March 1985: A blood test to screen for presence of anti-
bodies to the AIDS virus is approved for use.
October 1985: Actor Rock Hudson dies of AIDS, calling
increased public attention to the epidemic.
March 1986: Researchers report that a protein from the
coat of the AIDS virus, gp120,triggered antibody produc-
tion when injected into animals, a hopeful sign in the
search for vaccine strategies.
March-April 1986: Montagnier and colleagues announce
the discovery in Africa of another virus, designated LAV-
11, that causes AIDS. At about the same time, Essex and
others announce a new virus related to AIDS, designated
HTLV-IV, that apparently does not cause AIDS.
May 1986: An international committee proposes HIV as
the designation for the principal AIDS virus.
July 1986: Zagury injects himself and volunteers in first
test of an experimental AIDS vaccine in humans. The test
is not formally announced until March 1987.
September 1986: Federal officials announce an experi-
mental drug, AZT, had been shown to prolong the lives of
some AIDS victims.
November 1986: Researchers report the discovery of a
third virus linked to AIDS.
March 187: The FDA approves the drug AZT for pre-I
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The Dallas Morning News. [Newspaper article: AIDS, The State of the Science], article, June 29, 1987; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc916045/m1/2/: accessed June 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.