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OCTOBER 14, 2025
Merck’s Investigational Drug Could Bring a Once-Monthly Oral Option for HIV PrEP
By Meaghan Lee Callaghan
The drug is a nucleoside reverse transcriptase translocation inhibitor, a new class of HIV drugs currently under investigation. The drugmaker also is researching the other novel drug in this class, islatravir, which is undergoing trials for HIV treatment both by itself and in fixed-dose combinations—one with doravirine and another with lenacapavir (Sunlenca [for treatment], Gilead).
As for MK-8527, investigators are studying the drug for HIV PrEP, noting that newly published preclinical data show the drug has potent antiretroviral activity and favorable pharmacokinetics that make it an “attractive clinical candidate,” according to lead author Izzat T. Raheem, PhD, a distinguished scientist in Discovery Chemistry at Merck Research Laboratories, and his co-authors (PLoS Biol 2025;23[8]:e3003308).
How Does MK-8527 Work?
MK-8527 is a PrEP candidate because it interferes with HIV viral replication, helping to prevent HIV acquisition. “Specifically, MK-8527 inhibits HIV reverse transcriptase through multiple mechanisms of action, including inhibition of translocation and delayed chain termination,” Dr. Raheem told Infectious Disease Special Edition. “Its pharmacokinetic profile supports sustained drug levels that can be maintained for a month after a single dose, representing a potential innovation over current daily oral PrEP options.”
Continue reading... https://www.idse.net/HIV-AIDS/Article/10-25/MK-8527-HIV-PrEP-monthly-pills/78619
CONTACT
Marie Rosenthal
MRosenthal@McMahonmed.com
"Reproduced with permission - Infectious Disease Special Edition (IDSE)"
Infectious Disease Special Edition (IDSE)
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