HIV infection is the infection of white blood cells caused by the human immunodeficiency virus. The virus enters certain types of white blood cells and essentially hijacks the cells' machinery to make more copies of the virus, before killing the white blood cells and releasing the new virus into the bloodstream. Untreated HIV infection eventually leads to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, or AIDS. Patients with AIDS have severely decreased white blood cell numbers as a result of HIV. Since the white blood cells protect against infectious agents, patients with AIDS are extremely vulnerable to infection and disease. A range of anti-HIV medications has been developed to prevent infection and spread of HIV in white blood cells.
Kaletra
Kaletra, which was developed by Abbott Laboratories, is an anti-HIV medication that is a combination of the two drugs, lopinavir and ritonavir. It is classified as a protease inhibitor, which prevents HIV function within the white blood cells. HIV uses proteins to infect the cells, and many of these proteins are processed by proteases, protein-cleaving enzymes, that activate them. Without the use of proteases, the viral proteins are not active, so HIV cannot infect the cell. Kaletra targets HIV proteases to prevent and fight infection.
Kaletra has a number of side effects. According to Abbott Laboratories, patients taking Kaletra may experience irregular heartbeat, develop liver or pancreatic diseases, diabetes, and high blood cholesterol. Other common side effects of taking Kaletra include nausea, fatigue, stomach pain, or headaches.
Intelence
Intelence, also called etravirine, is an anti-HIV medication that was developed by Tibotec Therapeutics. It belongs to a class of anti-HIV drugs called non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, or NNRTIs. Reverse transcriptase is a protein that is used by the HIV virus to copy its genetic material, which it then uses to replicate the virus within the white blood cells. Inhibiting reverse transcriptase stops the virus from replicating to prevent the spread of infection. NNRTIs are one of two classes of drugs that inhibit reverse transcriptase.
Intelence may cause a number of side effects in AIDS patients over the course of treatment. According to Tibotec Therapeutics, Intelence may cause very severe skin defects, which can be fatal. Taking Intelence can also cause fat redistribution and central obesity, as well as immune-related disorders.
Emtriva
Emtriva, also known as emtricitabine, is an anti-HIV medication developed by Gilead Sciences. It is part of a class of drugs known as nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, or NTRIs. Like Intelence, Emtriva works by inhibiting the function of HIV reverse transcriptase, to prevent replication of the virus within the white blood cells. Although Emtriva and other NTRIs share a similar function to NNTRIs, they are a structurally different class of drugs, which inhibit reverse transcriptase by distinct mechanisms.
Emtriva has a number of known side effects. AIDSMeds.com reports that common side effects of taking Emtriva include nausea, headache and indigestion. Patients taking Emtriva may also experience dizziness, skin discoloration, or rashes.
