A class of medications long used to curb HIV infection shows promise as a therapy for age-related macular degeneration (AMD), suggest findings from an NIH-funded study. These mainstay HIV drugs, called nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), may eventually be repurposed to treat a host of other inflammatory disorders, too.
The study broke new ground by showing that NRTIs block inflammation, said Jayakrishna Ambati, M.D., vice chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at the University of Kentucky. Dr. Ambati’s lab led the study, which was published in Science.
Source: National Eye Institute
Photos: Jayakrishna Ambati, M.D.
