Oral CCR5 inhibitors to prevent HIV transmission: the new "morning-before pill"?
In a recent study by Matsuzawa and colleagues, Maraviroc, a CCR5 inhibitor, was used as pre-exposure prophylaxis against HIV-1 infection. The authors used an ex vivo model of HIV transmission to study the distribution and effectiveness of this HIV inhibitor in healthy volunteers. Strikingly, 3 days or more of oral administration of Maraviroc to healthy volunteers conferred protection against HIV infection to skin-derived Langerhans cells in the ex vivo system, suggesting Maraviroc as a useful candidate for pre-exposure prophylaxis in clinical trials.
Department of Dermatology and Wound Healing, Institute of Infection and Immunity, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK. Electronic address: piguetv@cardiff.ac.uk.
Vincent
V
Piguet
D065100:CCR5 Receptor Antagonists; D003510:Cyclohexanes / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D004848:Epithelium / Q000187:drug effects*; D023581:HIV Fusion Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D007801:Langerhans Cells / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D000077592:Maraviroc; D019713:Receptors, CCR5; D014230:Triazoles / Q000008:administration & dosage*
D065100:CCR5 Receptor Antagonists; C584933:CCR5 protein, human; D003510:Cyclohexanes; D023581:HIV Fusion Inhibitors; D019713:Receptors, CCR5; D014230:Triazoles; D000077592:Maraviroc