A molecule related to flavor enhancers
found in soy sauce is being studied as a possible treatment for HIV
patients, virologists at the University of Missouri recently
announced.
The molecule, EFdA, was first
discovered in 2001 by a Japanese soy sauce company looking to enhance
the flavor of its product.
“Patients who are treated for HIV
infections with Tenofovir eventually develop resistance to the drugs
that prevent an effective or successful defense of the virus,”
Stefan Sarafianos, associate professor of molecular microbiology and
immunology at the University of Missouri School of Medicine, said
in a statement on the school's website. “EFdA, the molecule we
are studying, is less likely to cause resistance in HIV patients
because it is more readily activated and is less quickly broken down
by the body as similar existing drugs.”
Sarafianos and his colleagues are
testing compounds for usefulness as potential HIV-halting drugs with
pharmaceutical company Merck.
“The structure of this compound is
very important because it is a lock-and-key kind of mechanism that
can be recognized by the target,” Sarafianos said. “Not only
does EFdA work on resistant HIV, it works better on HIV that has not
become Tenofovir resistant.”