Pfizer Antibiotic [Zithromax] Seen Reducing Heart Disease in Rabbit Study
Bloomberg News
September 25, 1998, 5:49 p.m. ET
Pfizer Antibiotic Seen Reducing Heart Disease in Rabbit Study
San Diego, California, Sept. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Pfizer Inc.'s
antibiotic Zithromax seemed to prevent hardening of the arteries
in a study of about 60 rabbits, an early indication that fighting
bacterial infection may fight off some heart disease.
Hardening of the arteries can lead to heart attacks and
strokes, two of the leading causes of death in the U.S. The
research was presented at the 38th Interscience Conference on
Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, held in San Diego.
Previous studies in animals had suggested a link between
hardening of the arteries, also known as atherosclerosis, and
bacterial infection. More research will be needed to prove a link
between bacterial infection and the disease in man.
''We think the animal studies may help develop better
guidelines'' for possible human studies, said Ignatius Fong,
professor of medicine at the University of Toronto.
In studies conducted at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto,
investigators infected three groups of rabbits with chlamydia
pneumonaie to produce respiratory infections. A group of 24
rabbits was treated with Zithromax five days later and another
group of 24 was given the antibiotic after six weeks.
The third group, which had 23 rabbits, was untreated to
serve as a control for the experiment. Eight of these rabbits
developed early-stage atherosclerosis in the heart's main artery,
the aorta. In the 24 rabbits given Zithromax after six weeks,
eight animals also developed some kind of aortic damage.
Only one rabbit of 24 treated earlier with Zithromax
developed atherosclerosis.
Research previously published in two medical journals
indicated use of some antibiotics might play a role in reducing
heart disease, Fong said.
Pfizer, the world's sixth biggest drugmaker by sales, also
introduced a new antibiotic Trovan earlier this year. Considered
a success among antibiotics, which have about $8 billion in
annual U.S. sales, Trovan's success has been overshadowed by
another product Pfizer introduced this year, the impotence pill
Viagra.
--Kerry Dooley in San Diego through the Washington newsroom (202) |
