What is "zidovudine"

azidothymidine \azidothymidine\ n. 1. 1 an antiviral drug, ( C10H13N5O4) used in the treatment of AIDS. It has the generic name of zidovudine.

Note: an analog of thymidine, it inhibits the replication of the viral chromosome.

Syn: AZT, zidovudine[generic], 3'-azido 3'-deoxythymidine, Retrovir[Trademark]

n. A nucleoside analog reverse transcriptase inhibitor, a type of antiretroviral drug, the first approved treatment for HIV.

n. an antiviral drug (trade name Retrovir) used in the treatment of AIDS; adverse side effects include liver damage and suppression of the bone marrow [syn: Retrovir, ZDV, AZT]

Zidovudine (ZDV), also known as azidothymidine (AZT), is an antiretroviral medication used to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS. It reduces the replication of the virus and leads to improvements in both symptoms and blood tests. It can also be used to prevent HIV transmission, such as from mother to child during the period of birth or after a needle stick injury. Used by itself in HIV-infected patients, AZT slows HIV replication in patients, but does not stop it entirely. HIV may become AZT-resistant over time, and therefore AZT is now usually used in conjunction with other anti-HIV drugs in the combination therapy called highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART).

It is of the nucleoside analog reverse-transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) class. AZT inhibits the enzyme (reverse transcriptase) that HIV uses to synthesize DNA, thus preventing viral DNA from forming.

Zidovudine was approved in the United States in 1986 and was the first treatment to be approved for HIV. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines, the most important medications needed in a basic health system. As of 2015 the cost for a typical month of medication in the United States is more than 200 USD. It is included in Combivir and Trizivir.