Therapeutic properties of sodium diethyldithiocarbamate: its role as an inhibitor in the progression of AIDS.

The therapeutic history of sodium diethyldithiocarbamate (dithiocarb) is briefly reviewed. Dithiocarb was discovered serendipitously in our laboratory 35 years ago for the specific treatment of nickel carbonyl poisoning. Since that time, the therapeutic efficacy of dithiocarb has been reported for many disorders, including: nickel, cadmium, thallium, copper, and mercury poisonings, experimental nickel carcinogenesis, protection against radiation damage to bone marrow, treatment of candidiasis in experimental animals, hepatolenticular degeneration (Wilson's disease), systemic lupus erythematosis, and human immunodeficiency virus infection (HIV). It has been used as an antagonist to cisplatin and cyclophosphamide toxicities, and as an antidote to hepatotoxicity induced by chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, and halothane. Most recently, it has been observed that the progression of HIV-1 infection is inhibited by dithiocarb administered intravenously or orally to patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Attention is directed to the interactions of divalent cations to viral infections and to metal chelators (e.g., dithiocarb) as potential antiviral agents.