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Studies Suggest Hepatitis G Virus Slows Down the AIDS VirusSeptember 6, 2001 A note from TheBody.com: Since this article was written, the HIV pandemic has changed, as has our understanding of HIV/AIDS and its treatment. As a result, parts of this article may be outdated. Please keep this in mind, and be sure to visit other parts of our site for more recent information! Two studies in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine (Vol. 345; No. 10; P 707-714 and 715-724) indicate that infection with a newly recognized virus seems to interfere with HIV, slowing its progression and prolonging survival of AIDS patients. The findings confirm earlier, smaller studies showing that patients with both HIV and hepatitis G lived longer than those infected with HIV alone. The hepatitis G virus, discovered in 1995, does not appear to cause hepatitis or any other disease, unlike other blood-borne hepatitis viruses that cause liver damage. It is found in about 2 percent of healthy blood donors. What isn't known is exactly how the virus inhibits HIV. Researchers say if they can figure that out, it could lead to new treatments for the AIDS virus. "If we can identify the path GBV-C is taking to inhibit HIV, then we're well on the way to making this something practical," said researcher Dr. Jack Stapleton of the Iowa City Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the University of Iowa. The Iowa study looked at 362 HIV-infected patients treated between 1988 and 1999. About 40 percent, 144 patients, were also infected with hepatitis G. About 29 percent of those infected with hepatitis G died during the four-year follow-up, compared with 56 percent of patients not infected with hepatitis G. A second study of 197 HIV patients in Germany also found significantly longer survival for the 33 patients with hepatitis G, even after more potent AIDS drugs became available in 1996. Dr. Steven Wolinsky of Northwestern University Medical School, co-author of an accompanying editorial, said findings of the two studies should be kept in perspective. "While we're looking at larger numbers of patients, we still don't really have a specific mechanism, nor have we ruled out any other potential variables that may be responsible," Wolinsky said. German researcher Hans L. Tillman and Stapleton both warn against intentionally infecting HIV patients with hepatitis G while research continues, a warning echoed by Wolinsky. Back to other CDC news for September 6, 2001 Associated Press 09.06.01; Stephanie Nano A note from TheBody.com: Since this article was written, the HIV pandemic has changed, as has our understanding of HIV/AIDS and its treatment. As a result, parts of this article may be outdated. Please keep this in mind, and be sure to visit other parts of our site for more recent information!  This article was provided by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is a part of the publication CDC HIV/Hepatitis/STD/TB Prevention News Update. Visit the CDC's website to find out more about their activities, publications and services.
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