Aflibercept ‘safe’ in HTLV-1-infected eyes

April 25, 2023 Staff reporters

ONLINE ONLY HOTLINKS: https://www.nzoptics.co.nz/articles/archive/rpe-a-haven-for-ebola/

Researchers from Japan have found anti-VEGF treatment is safe for intraocular use in patients infected with human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1), which can cause adult T-cell leukaemia and uveitis.

A Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) team, led by Professor Kyoko Ohno-Matsui, co-cultured HTLV-1-infected retinal pigment epithelium cells with aflibercept. Noting that VEGF is a selective competitor of HTLV-1 cell entry and the virus was previously shown to mimic VEGF, they said anti-VEGF treatment did not increase the pro-viral load in, or proliferation of, the cultured RPE cells; nor did it exacerbate inflammation in relation to HTLV-1 infection.