The HEPT Analogue WPR-6 Is Active against a Broad Spectrum of Nonnucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Drug-Resistant HIV-1 Strains of Different Serotypes

ABSTRACT Nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) are important components of the highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) used to treat human immunodeficiency type 1 virus (HIV-1). However, because of the emergence of drug resistance and the adverse effects of current anti-HIV drugs, it is essential to develop novel NNRTIs with an excellent safety profile, improved activity against NNRTI-resistant viruses, and enhanced activity against clinical isolates of different subtypes. Here, we have identified 1-[(benzyloxy)methyl]-6-(3,5-dimethylbenzyl)-5-iodopyrimidine-2,4(1 H ,3 H )-dione (WPR-6), a novel NNRTI with a 50% effective concentration (EC 50 ) of 2 to 4 nM against laboratory-adapted HIV-1 strain SF33 and an EC 50 of 7 to 14 nM against nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor-resistant HIV-1 strain 7391 with a therapeutic index of >1 × 10 4 . A panel of five representative clinical virus isolates of different subtypes circulating predominantly in China was highly sensitive to WPR-6, with EC 50 s ranging from 1 to 6 nM. In addition, WPR-6 showed excellent antiviral potency against the most prevalent NNRTI-resistant viruses containing the K103N and Y181C mutations. To determine whether WPR-6 selects for novel resistant mutants, in vitro resistance selection was conducted with laboratory-adapted HIV-1 strain SF33 on MT-4 cells. The results demonstrated that V106I and Y188L were the two dominant NNRTI-associated resistance mutations detected in the breakthrough viruses. Taken together, these in vitro data indicate that WPR-6 has greater efficacy than the reference HEPT analogue TNK651 and the marketed drug nevirapine against HIV-1. However, to develop it as a new NNRTI, further improvement of its pharmacological properties is warranted.