Question
What are fusion inhibitors and how do they work?
24 July 2006. Related: All topics, Opportunistic infections, Resistance.
Answer
Fusion inhibitors are a type of HIV drug that work by stopping the virus from attaching to a CD4 cell. They are also called entry inhibitors.
Although there is a lot of research into different potential entry inhibitors, only one drug has so far been approved in Europe and the US. This is called T-20 (also called enfuvirtide, tradename Fuzeon).
T-20 is an HIV drug that is given by sub-cutaneous injection (ie under the skin), twice daily. It is only used for people with resistance to other drugs, partly because of the inconvenience of the injections and partly because of the high cost. If you need to use T-20 though, it can be effective, especially if used with other drugs developed to work against drug resistant HIV – including tipranavir or darunavir.
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