Oxidation and nutritional deficiency in AIDS: Promotion of immune dysfunction for cardiac toxicity?

Immune dysfunction resulting from HIV infection is a major health threat. As HIV-infected persons survive previously life-threatening infection through the use of effective medical therapies, undernutrition, its immune dysfunction and heart disease have become critical issues in the health care of longer-term survivors. Changes in oxidation and the resulting immune modulation affect their host defenses. The potential role of oxidation and immune dysfunction in HIV-induced heart disease is reviewed. Antioxidant is becoming accepted as interventions in the early and ongoing treatment of HIV disease. Nutritional and hormonal therapy, in coordination with other medical interventions, should extend and improve the quality and quantity of life for individuals infected with HIV. Research about the relationship between nutrition/hormone and development of AIDS is essential for understanding its mechanisms of immune dysfunction and heart disease, and for determining the effectiveness of nutritional and hormonal therapy. The mechanisms and consequences of oxidation and immune dysfunction in HIV/AIDS patients are reviewed with special emphasis on heart disease.