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Pronunciation(s): ler-SIV-arine
What is the most important information I should know about lersivirine?
What is lersivirine?
- Lersivirine is in a category of HIV medicines called non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs). lersivirine prevents HIV from entering the nucleus of healthy CD4 cells. This prevents the cells from producing new virus and decreases the amount of virus in the body.
- Lersivirine will need to be used in combination with other drugs. Clinical trials will evaluate its effect in combination with other drugs, including nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs).
What is already known about lersivirine?
- The correct dose for lersivirine has not yet been determined. Preliminary experiments suggest that the drug can be taken by mouth once a day.
 Like other NNRTIs, lersivirine might interact with other medications, including those used to treat HIV. It is important that your personal physician and/or the research nurse or study investigator be aware of all drugs you are taking, including those you buy without a prescription.
- It is expected that lersivirine, when combined with other HIV medications, will have strong activity against HIV in people who have never taken an NNRTI in the past. A Phase I study, testing once- and twice-daily dosing of the drug as monotherapy (not in combination with other HIV medications), found that lersivirine has potent antiviral activity after a seven-day course of treatment. A phase II study, comparing lersivirine with Sustiva (efavirenz) in combination with other HIV medications, is currently under way.
- It is not yet known if lersivirine will work against strains of HIV that are already resistant to currently available NNRTIs.
What about drug interactions?
- There have not yet been studies demonstrating which other drugs may interact with lersivirine. Studies to help determine this are planned or ongoing.
What is known about side effects?
- Little is known about lersivirine's side effect profile. It was well tolerated in the seven-day Phase I study reported to date.
Who should not take lersivirine?
 It is not known whether lersivirine will harm an unborn baby. It is very important to treat HIV/AIDS during pregnancy to reduce the risk of infecting your baby. Talk to your doctor about your treatment options.
 It is not known whether lersivirine passes into breast milk and what effect it may have on a nursing baby. To prevent transmission of the virus to uninfected babies, it is recommended that HIV-positive mothers not breast-feed.
Where can I learn more about clinical trials of lersivirine?
- If you would like to find out if you are eligible for any clinical trials that include lersivirine, visit ClinicalTrials.gov, a site run by the U.S. National Institutes of Health. The site has information about all HIV-related clinical studies in the United States. For more info, you can call their toll-free number at 1-800-HIV-0440 (1-800-448-0440) or email contactus@aidsinfo.nih.gov.
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lersivirine
belongs to a class of anti-HIV drugs called 
