| Abstract | HIV-infected individuals are known to suffer from micronutrient deficiencies and oxidative stress. Therefore, as a therapy to be used alongside a drug treatment regimen, antioxidant supplementation has been proposed. Substantial evidence is available to support the use of antioxidant supplementation in patients not receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART); however, intervention trials in patients receiving HAART have had mixed results. In this talk, a mathematical model is developed to explore this potential therapy in patients on HAART. Clinical data from both HIV-negative and HIV-positive injected drug users (IDUs) are used to estimate model parameters; these groups have lower baseline concentrations of antioxidants than controls. Our model suggests that moderate levels of daily antioxidant supplementation can produce increases in CD4+ T cell concentrations in HIV-positive IDUs, although excessive supplementation has the potential to cause periods of immunosuppression. |
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