Enfuvirtide (T-20) – Other Categories

Currently, enfuvirtide (T-20) is the only available membrane fusion inhibitor licensed for HIV-1 combination therapy. T-20 was designed to bind the HIV-1 gp41 peptide preventing viral formation and membrane fusion. The C-terminal tryptophan-rich motif (TRM) of T-20 is essential for target binding and inhibition of viral fusion. However, T-20 has a low genetic barrier for drug resistance and a short in vivo half-life. T-20 is used in combination therapy but has spawned huge interest in how to find more potent HIV-1 inhibitors in the future. T-20 can be used as a model peptide as some researchers have already tried with the aim to increase its clinical efficacy. T-20 is only effective against HIV-1, there is hope that further study of T-20 could provide more broad-spectrum antiviral peptides.