Salk Company Encouraged by Study of New AIDS Product

Immune Response Corp. said Tuesday that studies indicate a treatment the company is testing can stimulate an infection-fighting response in AIDS patients.

The Carlsbad company, founded by polio vaccine pioneer Jonas Salk, cautioned that studies so far fall short of proving the product could slow the progress of the AIDS virus.

The company presented the data to the International Conference on AIDS in Amsterdam on Monday.

The study involved 60 patients, all of whom are infected with HIV but have no signs of the disease. The study found that the patients treated with the product demonstrated an antibody and a T-cell response significantly greater than those in a control group that did not receive the product. Antibodies and T-cells are major components in the body’s immune system, which fights disease.

Although most AIDS drug research has focused on boosting antibodies to fight the virus, Salk has argued for at least two years that stimulating T-cells, the body’s other form of immune reaction, is crucial. Salk says that stimulating T-cells activates immune cells to recognize and kill HIV-infected cells.