Higher iron stores and the HFE 187C>G variant delay onset of peripheral neuropathy during combination antiretroviral therapy

Main idea: Higher iron stores, the HFE 187C>G variant, and lower hsCRP predicted delayed onset of neuropathy among self-reported white individuals initiating cART. These findings require confirmation but may have implications for cART in HIV+ populations in areas with high endemic iron deficiency, especially those PWH in whom older, more neurotoxic antiretroviral drugs are occasionally still used.

Abstract: People with HIV (PWH) continue to experience sensory neuropathy and neuropathic pain during antiretroviral therapy (cART) for unclear reasons. This study evaluated the role of iron in a previously reported association of iron-loading hemochromatosis (HFE) gene variants with reduced risk of neuropathy in PWH who received more neurotoxic cART since an iron-related mechanism also might be relevant to neuropathic symptoms in PWH living in low-resource settings today. This time-to-event analysis addressed the impact of systemic iron levels on the rapidity of neuropathy onset in PWH who initiated cART. Soluble transferrin receptor (sTFR), the sTFR-ferritin index of iron stores, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) levels were determined in stored baseline sera from participants of known HFE genotype from AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) Study 384, a multicenter randomized clinical trial that evaluated cART strategies. Associations with incident neuropathy were evaluated in proportional-hazards, time-to-event regression models, adjusting for potential confounders. Of the 151 eligible participants with stored serum who were included in the original genetic study, 43 had cART-associated neuropathy; 108 had sufficient serum for analysis, including 30 neuropathy cases. Carriers of HFE variants had higher systemic iron and lower hsCRP levels than non-carriers.

Source PLOS