Small Molecule HIV-1 Attachment Inhibitors: Discovery, Mode of Action and Structural Basis of Inhibition

Advancements in Antiviral Drug Development: Comprehensive Insights into Design Strategies and Mechanisms Targeting Key Viral Proteins

Viral infectious diseases have always been a threat to human survival and quality of life, impeding the stability and progress of human society. As such, researchers have persistently focused on developing highly efficient, low-toxicity antiviral drugs, whether for acute or chronic infectious diseases. This article presents a comprehensive review of the design concepts behind virus-targeted drugs, examined through the lens of antiviral drug mechanisms. The intention is to provide a reference for the development of new, virus-targeted antiviral drugs and guide their clinical usage.

Mechanism of action, resistance, interaction, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and safety of fostemsavir

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has licensed many antiretroviral medications to treat human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), however, treatment options for people with multi-drug resistant HIV remain limited. Medication resistance, undesirable effects, prior tolerance, and previous interlacement incapacity to deliver new drug classes all lead to the requirement for new medication classes and drug combination therapy. Fostemsavir (FTR) is a new CD-4 attachment inhibitor medicine that was recently authorized by the United States FDA to treat HIV-1. In individuals with multidrug-resistant (MDR) HIV-1, FTR is well tolerated and virologically active. According to recent investigations, drug combination therapy can positively affect MDR-HIV. The mechanism of action, resistance, interaction, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and safety of FTR has been highlighted in this review.

Medicinal chemistry perspectives on the development of piperazine-containing HIV-1 inhibitors

The Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is the causative agent of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), one of the most perilous diseases known to humankind. A 2023 estimate put the number of people living with HIV around 40 million worldwide, with the majority benefiting from various antiretroviral therapies. Consequently, the urgent need for the development of effective drugs to combat this virus cannot be overstated. In the realm of medicinal and organic chemistry, the synthesis and identification of novel compounds capable of inhibiting HIV enzymes at different stages of their life cycle are of paramount importance. Notably, the spotlight is on the progress made in enhancing the potency of HIV inhibitors through the use of piperazine-based compounds. Multiple studies have revealed that the incorporation of a piperazine moiety results in a noteworthy enhancement of anti-HIV activity. The piperazine ring assumes a pivotal role in shaping the pharmacophore responsible for inhibiting HIV-1 at critical stage, including attachment, reverse transcription, integration, and protease activity. This review also sheds light on the various opportunities that can be exploited to develop effective antiretroviral targets and eliminate latent HIV reservoirs. The advancement of highly potent analogues in HIV inhibitor research has been greatly facilitated by contemporary medicinal strategies, including molecular/fragment hybridization, structure-based drug design, and bioisosterism. These techniques have opened up new avenues for the development of compounds with enhanced efficacy in combating the virus.

Synthetic Approaches to Piperazine-Containing Drugs Approved by FDA in the Period of 2011-2023

The piperazine moiety is often found in drugs or in bioactive molecules. This widespread presence is due to different possible roles depending on the position in the molecule and on the therapeutic class, but it also depends on the chemical reactivity of piperazine-based synthons, which facilitate its insertion into the molecule. In this paper, we take into consideration the piperazine-containing drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration between January 2011 and June 2023, and the synthetic methodologies used to prepare the compounds in the discovery and process chemistry are reviewed.

Production of monoclonal antibodies for therapeutic purposes: A review

Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have been used in the development of immunotherapies that target a variety of diseases, such as cancer, autoimmune diseases, and even viral infections; they play a key role in immunization and are expected after vaccination. However, some conditions do not promote the development of neutralizing antibodies. Production and use of mAbs, generated in biofactories, represent vast potential as aids in immunological responses when the organism cannot produce them on their own, these convey unique specificity by recognizing and targeting specific antigen. Antibodies can be defined as heterotetrametric glycoproteins of symmetric nature, and they participate as effector proteins in humoral responses. Additionally, there are different types of mAbs (murine, chimeric, humanized, human, mAbs as Antibody-drug conjugates and bispecific mAbs) discussed in the present work. When these molecules are produced in vitro as mAbs, several common techniques, such as hybridomas or phage display are used. There are several preferred cell lines that function as biofactories, for the production of mAbs, the selection of which rely on the variation of adaptability, productivity and both phenotypic and genotypic shifts. After the cell expression systems and culture techniques are used, there are diverse specialized downstream processes to achieve desired yield and isolation as well as product quality and characterization. Novel perspectives regarding these protocols represent a potential improvement for mAbs high-scale production.

Investigational drugs for HIV: trends, opportunities and key players

INTRODUCTION

Since the first antiretroviral drug was described, the field of HIV treatment and prevention has undergone two drug-based revolutions: the first one, enabled by the virtually concomitant discovery of non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase and protease inhibitors, was the inception of combined antiretroviral therapy. The second followed the creation of integrase strand-transfer inhibitors with improved safety, potency, and resistance profiles. Long-acting antiretroviral drugs, including broadly neutralizing antibodies, now offer the opportunity for a third transformational change in HIV management.

AREAS COVERED

Our review focused on HIV treatment and prevention with investigational drugs that offer the potential for infrequent dosing, including drugs not yet approved for clinical use. We also discussed approved drugs for which administration modalities or formulations are being optimized. We performed a literature search in published manuscripts, conference communications, and registered clinical trials.

EXPERT OPINION

While the field focuses on extending dosing intervals, we identify drug tissue penetration as an understudied opportunity to improve HIV care. We repeat that self-administration remains an essential milestone to reach the full potential of long-acting drugs. Treatments and prevention strategies based on broadly neutralizing antibodies require a deeper understanding of their antiretroviral properties.

The Effect of Treatment-Associated Mutations on HIV Replication and Transmission Cycles

HIV/AIDS mortality has been decreasing over the last decade. While promising, this decrease correlated directly with increased use of antiretroviral drugs. As a natural consequence of its high mutation rate, treatments provide selection pressure that promotes the natural selection of escape mutants. Individuals may acquire drug-naive strains, or those that have already mutated due to treatment. Even within a host, mutation affects HIV tropism, where initial infection begins with R5-tropic virus, but the clinical transition to AIDS correlates with mutations that lead to an X4-tropic switch. Furthermore, the high mutation rate of HIV has spelled failure for all attempts at an effective vaccine. Pre-exposure drugs are currently the most effective drug-based preventatives, but their effectiveness is also threatened by viral mutation. From attachment and entry to assembly and release, the steps in the replication cycle are also discussed to describe the drug mechanisms and mutations that arise due to those drugs. Revealing the patterns of HIV-1 mutations, their effects, and the coordinated attempt to understand and control them will lead to effective use of current preventative measures and treatment options, as well as the development of new ones.

Identification of human immunodeficiency virus -1 E protein-targeting lead compounds by pharmacophore based screening

OBJECTIVES

To identify potential compounds by seeking the knowledge of molecular interactions between human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) glycoprotein (gp) 120 protein and anti-HIV drug (BMS-488043).

METHODS

This study is a computational structure-based drug design study, carried out at University of Taif, Saudi Arabia and African Genome Centre (AGC), Mohammed VI Polytechnic University, Benguerir, Morocco from January 2021 to March 2022. Initially, using the docked structure of gp120 with BMS-488043, a structure-based pharmacophore model was created. The generated model was utilized for virtual screening of the ZINC and ChemBridge database in order to identify hit compounds. To further assess the time-dependent stability of the selected complexes, computer simulation was performed.

RESULTS

From pharmacophore-based screening, 356 hits were obtained from both the database. The docking studies of the retrieved hit compounds reveal that all the compounds fit into the binding site of gp120. However, based on the significant interactions with the crucial residues and docking scores four compounds were suggested as potential hits. MD simulation of ChemBridge14695864 and ZINC06893293 in complex with gp120 suggested that both compounds significantly stabilized the receptor.

CONCLUSION

These findings could aid in the design of effective drugs against HIV by inhibiting the interaction between gp120 and CD4.

The piperazine scaffold for novel drug discovery efforts: the evidence to date

INTRODUCTION

. Piperazine is a structural element present in drugs belonging to various chemical classes and used for numerous different therapeutic applications; it has been considered a privileged scaffold for drug design.

AREAS COVERED

The authors have searched examples of piperazine-containing compounds among drugs recently approved by the FDA, and in some research fields (nicotinic receptor modulators, compounds acting against cancer and bacterial multi-drug resistance), looking in particular to the design behind the insertion of this moiety.

EXPERT OPINION

Piperazine is widely used due to its peculiar characteristics, such as solubility, basicity, chemical reactivity, and conformational properties. This moiety has represented an important tool to modulate pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of drugs.

Virus-host interaction network analysis in Colorectal cancer identifies core virus network signature and small molecules

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Systematic analysis of virus-host networks identified key pathways in CRC.

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Core virus-CRC network revealed the growth pathway regulated by viruses.

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Short linear motif analysis identified druggable regions in virus proteins.

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Virtual screening revealed key anti-viral molecules against viral proteins.

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Molecular dynamics simulations showed the effect of anti-viral molecules.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a significant contributor to cancer-related deaths caused by an unhealthy lifestyle. Multiple studies reveal that viruses are involved in colorectal tumorigenesis. The viruses such as Human Cytomegalovirus (HCMV), Human papillomaviruses (HPV16 & HPV18), and John Cunningham virus (JCV) are known to cause colorectal cancer. The molecular mechanisms of cancer genesis and maintenance shared by these viruses remain unclear. We analysed the virus-host networks and connected them with colorectal cancer proteome datasets and extracted the core shared interactions in the virus-host CRC network. Our network topology analysis identified prominent virus proteins RL6 (HCMV), VE6 (HPV16 and HPV18), and Large T antigen (JCV). Sequence analysis uncovered short linear motifs (SLiMs) in each viral target. We used these targets to identify the antiviral drugs through a structure-based virtual screening approach. This analysis highlighted that temsavir, pimodivir, famotine, and bictegravir bind to each virus protein target, respectively. We also assessed the effect of drug binding using molecular dynamic simulations, which shed light on the modulatory effect of drug molecules on SLiM regions in viral targets. Hence, our systematic screening of virus-host networks revealed viral targets, which could be crucial for cancer therapy.

Small-molecule HIV-1 entry inhibitors targeting the epitopes of broadly neutralizing antibodies

Highly active antiretroviral therapy currently used for HIV/AIDS has significantly increased the life expectancy of HIV-infected individuals. It has also improved the quality of life, reduced mortality, and decreased the incidence of AIDS and HIV-related conditions. Currently, however, affected individuals are typically on a lifetime course of several therapeutic drugs, all with the potential for associated toxicity and emergence of resistance. This calls for development of novel, potent, and broad anti-HIV agents able to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. Significant progress has been made toward identification of anti-HIV-1 broadly neutralizing antibodies (bNAbs). However, antibody-based drugs are costly to produce and store. Administration (by injection only) and other obstacles limit clinical use. In recent years, several highly promising small-molecule HIV-1 entry inhibitors targeting the epitopes of bNAbs have been developed. These newly developed compounds are the focus of the present article.

Recent research results have converted gp120 binders to a therapeutic option for the treatment of HIV-1 infection. A medicinal chemistry point of view

Current therapeutic armamentarium for treatment of HIV-1 infection is based on the use of highly active antiretroviral therapy that, unfortunately, does not act as a curative remedy. Moreover, duration of the therapy often results in lack of compliance with the consequent emergence of multidrug resistance. Finally, drug toxicity issues also arise during treatments. In the attempt to achieve a curative effect, in addition to invest substantial resources in finding new anti-HIV-1 agents and in optimizing antiviral lead compounds and drugs currently available, additional efforts should be done to deplete viral reservoir located within host CD4⁺ T cells. Gp120 binders represent a class of compounds able to affect the interactions between viral envelope proteins and host CD4, thus avoiding virus-to-cell attachment and fusion, and the consequent viral entry into host cells. This review summarizes the efforts done in the last five years to design new gp120 binders, that finally culminated in the approval of fostemsavir as an anti-HIV-1 drug.