Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs, or nukes) for HIV may be used to treat age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness, and to treat other disorders related to inflammation, Reuters reports. Publishing their findings in the journal Science, researchers conducted research on the effects of NRTIs in mice as well as in retinal cells in the laboratory.

Macular degeneration leads to cell death in the macula, which is a portion of the eye near the retina’s center. It is untreatable in 90 percent of cases.

The researchers found that the NRTIs blocked various proteins that can kill retinal cells, thus protecting the mice’s vision. In addition, the study showed that the antiretrovirals block activity in a biological pathway known as the “inflammasome,” which leads to inflammation in the body. This finding suggests that NRTIs may be successful in treating AMD in humans, as well as graft-versus-host disease, which can occur after a bone marrow or stem cell transplant, when the immune system reacts to the implant.

“Through decades of clinical experience, we know that some of the drugs we tested are incredibly safe,” Benjamin Fowler, the lead author and a postdoctoral fellow in the department of ophthalmology and visual Sciences at the University of Kentucky, said in a press release. “Since these NRTIs are already FDA approved, they could be rapidly and inexpensively translated into therapies for a variety of untreatable or poorly treatable conditions.”

To read the Reuters story, click here.

To read the study abstract, click here.

To read the press release, click here.