The objectives of the trial are to evaluate the safety, toxicity, pharmacokinetic profile and initial clinical activity of KP-1461. The trial is being conducted at several HIV treatment centers in the US.
KP-1461 is a first-in-class therapeutic designed to overcome the problem of drug resistance that has emerged with approved HIV treatments. KP-1461 has a novel mechanism of action designed to eliminate the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) by selectively increasing its natural mutation rate to a point that it can no longer replicate.
Unlike currently approved HIV treatments – enzyme and fusion inhibitors – that work to block virus activation and replication, KP-1461 targets HIV mutation to force the production of a non-functional virus. This approach, called “Selective Viral Mutagenesis,” may have potential applications to the treatment of other viral diseases.
“KP-1461 is an exciting investigational compound that offers a potential new approach to the treatment of HIV infection,” said Dr Donna Sweet, clinical investigator and professor of medicine at the University of Kansas School of Medicine. “Unlike currently approved anti-HIV drugs that work to inhibit the HIV-virus by suppressing its replication, KP-1461 is designed to generate a high rate of mutation that is lethal to the virus. We are pleased to be investigating this product candidate in HIV-positive patients.”