NATION IN BRIEF : WASHINGTON, D.C. : Bootleg AIDS Drug Draws FDA Warning

The Food and Drug Administration, in an unusual act of cooperation with illegal “buyers clubs” that distribute experimental AIDS drugs, has warned the clubs that they may be selling capsules of the anti-viral drug DDC that are dangerously high--or low--in strength. Precise dosage is crucial in achieving the appropriate therapeutic effect, officials said. The agency does not intend to stop the activities of the clubs, knowledgeable sources said. The clubs, which have sprung up in recent years from the AIDS activist network because of frustration over what it sees as the slow pace of federal drug approval, have been a source of experimental drugs as well as approved medications at prices substantially lower than market rates.