ROCHE UNDER FIRE FROM AIDS ACTIVIST GROUPS

Hoffmann-La Roche is the latest in a series of pharmaceutical companies to be targeted for criticism by AIDS activist group ACT UP over access to its experimental AIDS treatments. ACT UP organized a demonstration outside the company's US facility at Nutley, New Jersey, to demand access within 30 days to two of Roche's antiviral drugs.

For its part, Roche maintains that its goals are the same as the AIDS community and says it has "an ethical responsibility to provide what we consider to be reasonable assurance that drugs made available...will cause no harm while offering the appropriate likelihood of activity in the treatment of this disease."

TAT Antagonist And Proteinase Inhibitor The compounds in question are Ro 24-7429, a TAT antagonist, and Ro 31-8959, a proteinase inhibitor. Ro 24-7429 has been evaluated in a 14-day pharmacokinetic trial involving 51 patients. This trial showed that the compound is metabolized in the body in a very complex manner, and may accumulate to very high levels when given for long periods of time. In addition, several Phase I studies have been carried out and the company notes that certain safety issues have arisen which require careful evaluation before an expanded access program for the compound can be considered.