Disulfiram and the HIV Latent Reservoir

The main barrier to eradicating HIV in patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART) is persistence of virus in a latent form in resting memory CD4 cells. In an in vitro model of HIV latency, disulfiram — a drug used to treat alcoholism — was previously found to induce HIV gene expression, suggesting that it can activate latent virus. Now, investigators have examined the effect of disulfiram on the HIV latent reservoir in patients on stable suppressive ART.

Fifteen participants received disulfiram 500 mg daily for 14 days. Plasma viremia was measured using a sensitive single-copy research assay to determine whether disulfiram induced HIV expression and release (markers that latency has been reversed). The frequency of latently infected CD4 cells …